Warrior Instincts
by Young Napoleon22
Summary: There's no doubt that, had Goku never hit his head, Kakarot would have been a completely different person. Escaping being locked away by a chance accident Kakarot now has the chance to become the man, the warrior, and the Saiyan he was originally meant to. No paring decided yet!
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: If you know me you know I don't normally out these in the front of a chapter, but since this is a new story I felt there were something I needed to point out.**_

 _ **1- This is not a Goku Black story. I used his image because that's the look Kakarot will have when he reaches the Piccolo Jr. Saga. The earring will be something completely different for those of you who know about the actual story behind Goku Black.**_

 _ **2- This story has no actual intended pairing yet. What that means is, Kakarot may think or say something to another character but that doesn't mean anything will happen between them. You may feel free to offer a suggestion about who you think would be best, but please understand that that aspect of the story won't matter until Kakarot is an adult.**_

 _ **Anyway, for those of you who know me, I hope you enjoy my take on the DBZ story, and for all those who don't I thank you for giving me a chance.**_

 _ **Oh, and the first chapter is a mention to the quote about the journey of 1,000 steps for those who don't kow.**_

 _ **Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch.1- The first step.**_

 _ **xXx**_

 _Hard, onyx-black eyes stared across the star-filled scene around them and into the cruel, blood-red pair that looked back in boredom._

 _The dark eyes belonged to a man, a warrior if his damaged armor was any indication, who shook with a sense of adrenaline. His right hand twitched heavily, as if readying for an attack, and a rebellious smirk slid its way onto the guy's face. Even as blood dripped down from the red bandanna wrapped around his forehead._

 _His lips moved, a silent speech, aimed at the crimson-eyed adversary._

 _Those eyes were set against an almost reptilian-like face, one who's head was crowed by a set of horns. The demon, as would be the only way to categorize such a frightening creature, sat lazily in a floating throne; one that hid most of the monster's body, but one could see the tip of a tail resting on the lip of one side._

 _The demon made no effort to reply to the warrior's silent words._

 _Instead, as the wild haired fighter's hand erupted in a blinding flash of light, the villainous-looking reptile held up a single finger._

 _As the scarred man threw his attack though, what appeared to be a sun seemed to form out from the tip of the monster's fingertip. Long before the wounded soldier's own attack hit home his foe's weapon grew to such a size that it easily engulfed the much smaller light swallowing it whole._

 _Then, laughing maniacally, the horn-headed fiend tipped his hand and let the literal supernova drop from his finger, and let the monstrous force swiftly close in on its' target._

 _The onyx-eyed man screamed in horror as he was engulfed in the searing heat; the remnants of his armor quickly giving out under the pressure of the attack. His cry of horror finally breaking through the silence as he yelled a name: "FRIEZA!"_

 _oo0oo_

Onyx-black eyes snapped open and their owner jolted up from their bed with a gasp. Moonlight shining through the closed curtains vaguely illuminated the form of a small boy, one with a wild head of hair and an unusually built physique. The naked youth took deep, haggard breaths as he lifted a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Goku, as he'd been named by the elderly martial artist named Gohan, had lost count of the times he'd had that same dream since that day two weeks ago he'd looked up at the full moon.

It had been a strange night, one that the young boy could remember nothing about, but that had ultimately ended in Gohan's death; he'd been crushed by... _something_.The footprint Goku had found the elderly man in didn't match any of the other types the boy had seen before. It looked like an apes foot.

 _'A giant ape,'_ the wild-haired child thought seriously. _'Could that be the monster Gohan warned me about all those years ago; the one who only comes out on full moon nights?'_

It fit, seeing as Goku had never encountered the creature before that night, but it also raised the question of 'why'. Why did it only come out on those nights in particular; and why had it been so close to Goku's home?

These questions were pushed back though when the boy thought about why he'd recalled that memory in the first place: the dream.

Goku had had the same dream almost every night now, and on the rare occasion he didn't the pint-size martial artist's head was blank; he either dreamed of the warrior and the demon, or he didn't dream at all.

But the dream was something else that caused Goku to wonder. Mainly about the war-torn warrior; and why the man looked so much like himself. With Gohan no longer there to bounce these questions off of Goku was left to decipher the answers on his own. And through his workings the boy had come up with an interesting theory.

The man was his father.

The uncanny resemblance helped solidify the deduction, but it was later on when Goku focused on the details of the dream that he found something to really make him believe it. The man had a tail.

Goku had never met another person with a tail before, granted he lived thousands of miles from the nearest bit of civilization, but still. Gohan hadn't had a tail, so that had to mean _having_ one made Goku special. It made him something more than human.

It made him an alien; if his father flying in outer space was any indication.

 _'That would explain my incredible strength and speed.'_ Thought Goku as he lay back down and prepared to try falling asleep again. As he shut his eyes though, one more thought broke through the fog of sleep before the boy drifted into unconsciousness again.

 _'And if I'm an alien, I must have come here in a spaceship.'_

 _ **xXx**_

The following morning found Goku awake before the sun and practicing the various kata that Gohan had shown him. While still only a boy at the tender age of eleven, the wild-haired youth showed an unprecedented level of natural skill in the fighting arts, proven by how quickly he picked up his master's teachings. Thinking on it now, Goku wondered if this too had anything to do with his alien nature; or had it just been the blood of his warrior father in him?

Whatever the case, Goku took to his amazing abilities in stride, using his natural talent to push himself far beyond what any normal eleven-year-old was capable of. The evidence of which lay in the ruble at the boy's feet; he'd obliterated a boulder five times his size with just his finger.

Dusting off his hands Goku decided that he'd practiced enough for the time being and that it was time for breakfast. Slipping back into his purple gi top, the tailed youth made his way into the surrounding woods to find something to eat.

The task itself was simple enough, use his tail as a lure and catch one of the large fish in the lake, and then drag his catch home to cook it over a fire. Just like every other day.

Or so Goku thought.

As his mind wandered to the possible location of his ship, the young boy didn't hear the roaring of an engine as a car came speeding down the dirt path. It wasn't until he heard someone shout at him to 'get out of the road' that Goku turned his onyx-black eyes upwards and in the direction of the scream. Just in time to be hit head on by the bumper of a compact car.

While normally such an incident would send someone flying off their feet, Goku wasn't any ordinary child, and so because of his unreal strength it was the mechanized monster that suffered. The whole front end was turned in on itself, and smoke billowed from under the crumpled hood. Inside, a blue-haired human sat dazed and disoriented from the crash.

But that only lasted for a moment, and soon, the person behind the wheel shoved open their door and stumbled out in an enraged heap.

"What the hell is your problem kid; didn't your parents ever teach you to watch where you're going!?" The voice that shouted at Goku was unlike anything the boy had heard before. It was nothing like his _or_ Gohan's; it was higher in pitch, but still held a soft, flowing undertone to it. Secretly, Goku liked this person's voice.

But something deep inside him bristled at the tone she'd taken with him, and the young boy found him self almost subconsciously scoffing back. "Well, it'd be pretty hard for them to do that, considering they're dead."

Oddly enough, this seemed to take much of the fight out of the stranger's eyes, which Goku noticed were an interesting shade of blue. Their eyebrows lifted from their scrunched position, and the stranger let out a small gasp.

"O-Oh," they said softly. "I-I didn't know; sorry about that."

Goku merely shook his head, strangely pleased but also disappointed that the stranger had given in already, before he told them that it was okay. "As far as I know, they've been dead since the day I was born; the only person I've ever known was the man who found me, his name was Gohan."

Something in the boy's answer seemed to confuse the taller person, because they cocked their head to the side as they asked, "What do you mean he 'found' you?"

While at first he thought of revealing himself as an alien, Goku held off on that until he got a better read on the stranger before him. So, instead, he went with a simpler version of his past. "Gohan told me once that he'd found me in the woods one day while he was taking a walk; I was alone, and after never being able to track down anyone who knew me, he took me in and looked out for me."

This seemed to lighten the stranger's mood; if the new shine in their eyes and the softening of their face were any indication. With a slight smile, Goku's blue-haired acquaintance mentioned that that was very nice and then asked if they could meet Gohan.

"If you'd been here a couple weeks ago, yeah, but Gohan's dead now." Was the young boy's nonchalant response. Then, tired of being the one doing all the answering, Goku decided to ask his own series of questions. "And besides, even if he were still alive, why would I introduce you to him when I don't even know your name?"

At this the stranger's cheeks turned a delicate shade of pink, something that confused Goku, but as they itched their nose the stranger answered: "You're right, sorry about that, my name is Bulma."

"Bulma," Goku tested out the name, letting it roll off his tongue. It was a strange name, that's for sure, but not unpleasant in any way. Then, realizing he was the one being rude now, the wild-haired boy went on to introduce himself next. "You have a nice name Bulma, it's nice to meet you, my name is Goku."

"Goku?" The newly introduced Bulma questioned. "Is that your given name, or did that Gohan guy give it to you?"

The child martial artist answered that it was the name given to him by Gohan. "I don't know what my real name is, but I figure the one I have is better than having none at all, right?"

"I-I guess so," Bulma answered uncertainly; completely mystified by how a child so young could be so aloof about such a thing as being an orphan. But before Bulma could say anything else, Goku asked another question. One Bulma didn't think in a million years to hear.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask, how come you look so different from me or Gohan? I mean, I have muscles and Gohan had a scraggly voice, why are you so slim and soft-spoken?"

Bulma eyed the young boy like he'd grown a second head, unsure if Goku was being serious. But as Bulma looked into his eyes and saw that the kid was earnest in his questioning the blue-haired newcomer decided to answer him. "I-It's because I'm a _girl_ Goku; I'm supposed to look and sound like this."

"Really; a girl?" Goku looked at Bulma in a new light. Gohan had indeed taught him about girls, but having never seen one didn't have any actual way of knowing that Bulma was one until she told him herself. And, seeing the blue-haired human, Goku now had a better understanding of why Gohan was so obsessed with them. There was indeed something about Bulma that spoke to a deeper part of young Goku.

"Yep," Bulma answered cheekily while placing her fists on her hips. She wore a smug smirk on her lips as she went on to say, "And if I do say so myself I'm a pretty beautiful specimen; a true work of art."

Having confirmation of her status made Goku think of another question: "So, if you're a girl, does that mean you live in one of those big cities Gohan told me about?"

"That's right kid, but we can talk about that later, first I wanna check something out." Bulma put their conversation on hold so that she could pull a strange, round device from around her hip and clicked the button on top. Goku watched as her eyes widened in shock, as well as hope, before Bulma turned her attention back to him. "H-Hey, Goku, Gohan wouldn't have happened to have a dragon ball by chance would he?"

This confused Goku for a moment, but after asking what she meant and seeing Bulma pull two orange orbs from her bag, the wild-haired kid knew what she was looking for. Gohad did indeed have one of these 'dragon balls'...but that didn't mean he was about to just hand it over.

 _'After all, if she's collecting them, and from that look in her eye, these things must be pretty valuable.'_ Goku thought to himself.

"Um, yeah, Gohan's got one with four stars on it...but what's so special about them that you want his when you've already got two of your own?"

Bulma once again was floored by the child's lack of knowledge; didn't _everyone_ know the legend of Shenron? Shaking her head to clear those thoughts away, the blue-eyed beauty told Goku the tale of the Eternal Dragon and his power to grant any one wish when all seven dragon balls were collected.

"And that's why I need Gohan's dragon ball; so I can make my wish." Bulma's voice took on a pleading, almost pouty tone.

"But what if _I_ have a wish Bulma? If the dragon only grants one, is it really fare that you get yours but I don't get mine?" Goku questioned. And it was true; there was a part of Goku that wanted to wish his father back to life, if for nothing else than to learn more about where he was from.

Bulma eyed Goku for a moment before smiling kindly at him; although the young boy could see it was slightly strained. She wasn't expecting him to resist her wishes. "Well, Goku, the dragon balls can be used once every year so this time can be my turn and next time we'll let you make a wish okay?"

Goku thought about this for a moment before finally deciding that was fare, especially considering Bulma had been the one to introduce him to the legend in the first place. And she'd already went out of her way to collect two of the seven anyways. Nodding in acceptance, Goku threw in one condition before fully agreeing.

"I want you to help me find something before I give you the ball though."

The serious look on Goku's face threw Bulma for a loop; who the heck was this kid? Never the less, the blue-haired genius smiled in thanks before saying: "Sure thing kid; what are you looking for?"

"...My spaceship."

It was a gamble, but, with everything he'd just heard about a mystical dragon and granting wishes Goku doubted he'd have trouble convincing Bulma he was from space. In fact, as his tail slipped from around his waist to scratch an itch on his face, he noticed that the blue-haired girl was just now realizing that her car had been beaten by a kid.

Blue eyes widened comically as Bulma looked between her trashed automobile and the furry, brown appendage finding its way back around the kid's waist. "Y-You're from outer space!?"

Goku raised a single eyebrow at her reaction; he had a feeling it would go something like this. "Yes, I am, but from what part I am unsure. As I've told you, Gohan found me when I was a baby, the only thing I left out was that he'd only done so because he was around when my ship crash landed here in these mountains."

Bulma continued to stare as the spiky-haired kid expanded on the story he'd just told her a minute ago. The heiress almost couldn't believe her own ears, and yet, her genius mind rationalized that there really was no other explanation for Goku's tail, or his ability to beat a speeding car head on. _'And besides,'_ she thought with a sigh, _'who am I to judge or call him a liar; after all, my father is poker buddies with an anthropomorphic dog who people crowned King of Earth.'_

Another minute went by, and just as Goku was about to ask Bulma if she was alright, the older teen blinked back into focus and turned her eyes on the alien boy. "W-Well, this definitely wasn't how I expected my day to go, but then I suppose I shouldn't really be too surprised by the existence of aliens, after all there's still so much of space we haven't looked at."

Ah, now that was more like it Goku thought as he lowered his eyebrow. Then, folding his muscled arms across his chest, the wild-haired young martial artist asked Bulma if she was willing to trade her help for the dragon ball he had.

Seeing nothing really wrong with the trade, and eager to make a possible new discovery about the universe, Bulma readily agreed to lend Goku a hand. However, after capsuling her ruined vehicle and returning her attention to the smaller boy, Bulma asked why he hadn't just asked Gohan to show him when he was alive?

"I hadn't cared much about my history until recently, and I guess Gohan didn't think I should since he never mentioned it" was Goku's response. His voice was a little dazed though as his focus was on the small box of capsules Bulma still held in her hand.

The blue-haired beauty raised a curious brow as she listened to Goku's answer. Curious, at least, until she saw what had caught his attention. Smirking playfully she boasted, "What's the matter kid? Never seen a Dino Capsule before?"

Goku shook his head of wild hair and told her no. "Gohan and I didn't use cars or any other real technology; we cooked over open fires, and bathed using the rivers around us. But he did tell me about them, and how useful they could be I storing all sorts of different things." Then, thinking of something else Gohan had mentioned about the legendary capsules, Goku asked how she could afford so many as Gohan said they were expensive.

At this Bulma felt her face heat up a little; were her families capsules really that expensive? "Well, yeah, I suppose some of the newer models can be a bit pricey but it's not like Dino Capsules aren't accessible to everyone; you just have to know what you can afford."

Not having any real experience with money or the business side of supply and demand Goku let the matter rest at Bulma's muttered words. Then, looking to the sky he concluded that, while there was still hours of daylight left, it would be a good idea to get started looking for his ship.

Turning his eyes back to Bulma Goku relayed his thoughts to her and, after the blue-eyed girl voiced her agreement, they were on their way into the tree line; Goku's fish being forgotten in the search.

 _ **xXx**_

Goku and his newly met search partner Bulma trekked through the surrounding forest area for, what Bulma realized after looking at her watch, two hours. And while the high mountain air kept the woods from being a muggy mosquito fest, the blazing summer sun was still coming down on the pair at full strength.

After taking another drink from her canteen, the blue-haired girl groaned in discomfort before asking if the young monkey boy even knew where they were going. "We've been out here forever Goku, this much unprotected exposure to the sun isn't exactly good for my sensitive skin ya know."

The youth in question didn't bother to look back at the girl behind him, choosing instead to focus on the shrubbery that needed to be pushed aside, as he answered her. "It shouldn't take too much longer for us to find it Bulma; I doubt Gohan walked too far from his home during his trips, so my ship has to be close by." Then, almost as an afterthought, the tailed alien _did_ turn one eye on Bulma as he muttered, "And don't call me 'monkey boy'."

Bulma managed a swift nod of understanding before Goku turned his eye away, but once she was sure the boy couldn't see it, the bluenette impishly bit her bottom lip as she watched his back. _'I think I'll have some fun with that little piece of information,'_ she thought, realizing the name got under Goku's skin.

However, before the young girl could think up another way to slip the name into conversation she was signaled to halt. Looking from her companion's outstretched hand to his face Bulma quickly noticed the look of annoyance that was creased into the boy's features. Curious to what could be the problem she asked, "What's the matter Goku, why are we stopping?"

"I found my ship," he managed through fiercely ground teeth.

On her end, hearing this made Bulma excited. Not only was she about to be the first person to introduce alien technology to the world, but it also meant she would soon be in possession of her third dragon ball. _'There's just one problem though.'_ she thought.

Whatever was on the other side of those trees, Goku wasn't happy with it.

Taking a careful step forward, so as not to set him off, Bulma whispered to the gi clad alien why they weren't getting closer.

"Look for yourself," was his curt reply.

Puzzled as to what could have the younger boy so on edge Bulma took his advice and, moving even closer, peeked out from behind the last bit of tree line that separated the pair from the next clearing. It didn't take her long to find the problem.

Once Bulma's blue eyes were able to see past the trees it took only seconds for them to lock on to a giant, scaly foot with claws. Swiftly peering upwards, the blunette's view was filled with the image of a fully grown T-Rex! Barely managing to keep herself from squealing in terror Bulma hauled herself back behind the safety of the trees and stumbled backwards until managing to trip, and fall on her butt.

"I-I guess that could be a problem," the girl babbled in a breathless tone. Turning her shaky vision to the boy in front of her, Bulma mumbled that they would have to wait until the lizard left before checking on Goku's ship.

Only to be stunned into silence by his response.

"No, I'm sure I can bring it down, the problem is the fool is standing five feet from my pod. If I try to fight it, there's a chance it could take a wrong step and crush it; no, I'll have to draw it away first, problem is I don't know how."

By the end of his explanation Goku was looking left and right in an effort to find something he could use so as to snag the over-grown lizard's attention. _'But with no other animal in sight, and none that I can smell near by, that only leaves...'_ Onyx-black eyes met with ocean-blue. "Bulma...this is going to sound crazy but-"

The older girl didn't even give Goku a chance to finish, "Don't even think about it kid. There's no way you are using _me_ as live bait; we're just going to have to wait—hey! Goku what are you doing!"

In the middle of her refusal Goku used his superior speed to rush over and, taking care not to grip too tight, wrapped his hand around Bulma's slim wrist before pulling the girl to her feet and pushing her out into the clearing. "Just get its attention," he said in a rushed explanation, "move him away from my ship and then I'll come out and kill it. Trust me."

Not fully realizing what happened Bulma turned back after stumbling into the clearing and shouted, "Trust you!? I just met you monkey boy, and after pulling a stunt like this, you think I'm gonna trust you!?"

Bulma was about to give the wild-haired boy behind the trees another piece of her mind when the earth shaking beneath her sneakers drew her attention to the _real_ problem on her hands. Looking up, the blue-haired beauty stared into the crimson eyes of the lizard king, blinking once, then twice, before screaming and dashing to her left in fear.

The loud noise, sudden movement, and thought of an afternoon snack, were the perfect combination in getting the dinosaurs attention. In seconds the small mountain of a reptile had all its focus on the moving meat stick that was zeroed in on its sights...never noticing as it moved in for the chase, that a second figure had exited from the trees that were now at its back.

For Bulma this was a nightmare. Her legs, while aesthetically pleasing, were not the legs of a runner. Her body moved slowly despite her best efforts to escape and within seconds of being pushed, the girls lungs and muscles ached painfully with exhaustion. Fearing her life was over, as it was only a matter of time before the monster caught up with her, Bulma almost forgot that there was still hope. Goku. Managing to suck in a great mouthful of air, the bluenette let it all out in a crazed scream for help.

"GOKU WHERE ARE YOU!? HURRY UP AND SAVE ME!"

Those seem to have been the magic words, because almost immediately after the ground shook as if hit by an earthquake. The force was of tremors were so strong, Bulma found herself off balance and once again falling to the forest floor; this time on her hands and knees. Still fearing for her life however, Bulma whipped her head around and stared wide eyed in the direction she believed her doom to come from. Only to have them nearly pop out of their sockets and her jaw hit the floor.

 _'N-No way,'_ the frightened girl thought to herself in disbelief. Still gasping for air Bulma looked on at the picture in front of her. _'That's just, i-it's impossible!'_

The thing that had the genius so baffled was that, no more than five yards from where she sat lay the unmoving, _dead_ body of the very same T-Rex that had been chasing her only seconds before. However, this wasn't what had the girl so baffled. No, it was the fact that Goku, a boy who couldn't have been older than thirteen by Bulma's calculations, was standing atop the giant lizard's head with his fist buried elbow deep in its skull.

' _Goku,'_ she thought it amazement, _'who are you?'_

Bulma's question was put on hold though because, once he was sure the dinosaur was down and out, Goku pulled his bloody hand free and, leaping from his perch, began to make his way over to the crater he'd seen earlier.

Remembering the whole reason for the chase, Bulma managed to haul herself up on her feet again before making her way towards Goku on shaky legs. _'They feel like jello,'_ she thought in dismay.

And yet in spite of this the girl was able to hobble over, moving swiftly past the dinosaur, towards the edge of the same crater she'd seen her savior move to. Once there, Bulma let herself settle down along the lip of the impact site so as to rest her burning muscles. From this point of view the girl could easily see the little white pod that Goku now stood in front of. The transport was clearly alien, and appeared to have been built to carry one person.

Which begged the question: why had Goku been sent to Earth alone?

It was a loud hissing noise pulled Bulma from her thoughts this time, and when the world came back into focus she found that the sound had been Goku's pod opening. _'Maybe it only opens for him; like thumb lock for a safe?'_

Whatever it was, the space craft had indeed opened, and even from her higher vantage point Bulma could see the high-tech inside of the ship. She could also see the comfortable-looking seat inside where the pilot would sit. Bulma's blue eyes could even make out the various, flashing instruments that must have been the controls. All-in-all, while the pod itself was banged up, Bulma could tell that the craft was far beyond anything the people of her own planet were capable of.

However, just as she was about to call out to the owner of the pod Bulma heard a voice. It was female, but mechanical, like the one someone heard on a voicemail over the phone. The first time it spoke the bluenette had been so caught off guard she'd missed what was said, but it soon became clear the voice had been set on a loop when the teenage genius heard the voice again. The second time she'd only caught the last words, 'life forms', and assumed it was telling Goku to study them.

It was the third time, when Bulma finally, clearly heard the message that the girl felt her blood run cold and her heart stop.

" _ **Wake up Kakarot; destroy all life forms."**_

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Alright everyone, that is chapter one to my official next story. This time I'll be using my favorite anime, Dragon Ball Z.**_

 _ **I wanna start out by saying that I've wanted to do this story for a while now, but haven't really had a decent train of thought to run with until just recently. I'd read one or two other fanfics that center around a Goku who doesn't hit his head and, while AU A Saiyan Warrior is impressive in its length as well as depth, I didn't like the actual direction Goku himself was taken in. Nor did I full feel enveloped in the beginning. So, with that being said, this is my attempt to create a story that tells the tale of Kakarot rather than Goku.**_

 _ **Next I wanna say that, pairing wise I'm actually not sure what I wanna do with it. I know it seems like I hinted at him winding up with Bulma, and that was my original plan as I do promote that couple, it's not necessarily going to be the case. I've thought of numerous options, but since romance isn't really the main game for this story, I want any who read this to understand that if Kakarot even really winds up with anyone it won't be something that happens until at LEAST the Piccolo Jr. arc like with the original series. However, if he does, it will be based on a fully built relationship as opposed to what happened with Goku and Chi-Chi.**_

 _ **Moving on to my next topic: Kakarot's attitude. This ties in with what you read during his meeting with Bulma; Kakarot is a saiyan. What this means is he will have highly active instincts. That is why he has the experiences he does while meeting Bulma: He instinctively is drawn to females who challenge him. But enough about that type of stuff for now. I want those who read this to be aware that, while Kakarot will not be a barbarian he will embrace his warrior side. He will enjoy fighting, won't mind killing, and isn't opposed to playing hard ball with those who are weaker than him. Over all I wanna say that Kakarot will be en evolutionary character, rather than Goku's stagnant outline.**_

 _ **Anways, I don't like making these things super long so I'll end it here. If you have questions about the story or comments feel free to leave me a review or a PM. Also, what do you guys think about the cover art I put together for the story?**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: Okay, before you go on to reading I want everyone to understand one thing. I have no delusions that Goku could defeat Roshi at this point in time. With that said, if there's anything you are curious about please wait until the end to see if it's explained. If it's not, just message me and I'll answer it for you.**_

 _ **Warrior instincts Ch.2- What's in a name?**_

 _ **Xxx**_

" _ **Wake up Kakarot; destroy all lifeforms."**_

Bulma listened as this same order repeated itself for the fifth time, her genius mind unable to accept what her ears were hearing. Goku, or rather _Kakarot_ , had been sent to Earth with the mission of wiping out all of humanity?

No, Bulma's mind hastily denied, there's just no way that was true. Goku, the boy standing no more than a few yards away from her, couldn't be this 'Kakarot'...could he?

The scary thing was, Bulma had no other plausible explination for who else the space pod in front of her could belong to. Because, if it wasn't Goku's, why hadn't the owner proceeded along with their mission? Why hadn't the lifeforms of Earth been spared?

These rationalizations did little to help calm the bluenette's racing heart, because they meant that Goku was indeed this 'Kakarot'. Goku was sent to destroy them.

Bulma's subconscious noticed how she was beginning to hyperventilate. Her lungs were on fire, and her body shook with the desire to run. And she would have had her genius mind not managed to reboot itself in time.

Even _if_ Goku was this Kakarot person that didn't mean he was going to go along with his mission. A mission that apparently wasn't too important if no one had come to Earth and checked on him. Goku seemed logical enough, even advanced for a boy his age, so surely he would see reason and choose not to destroy the human race.

And yet, that last thought forged a new road of curiosity.

How exactly was a child supposed to destroy earth's entire population by himself?

 _'I mean yeah, the kid managed to take down that dinosaur with just one punch, and he took the full brunt of my capsule car like it was nothing. But what if he was shot with something like a missile, or nuclear bomb? Wouldn't that stop him?'_

Choosing not to dwell on it Bulma instead began a slow, careful descent into the large crater. It took a few minutes, but once her feet were stable again the blue-haired genius shuffled over to her monkey-tailed companion.

"H-Hey, Goku? Um, I'm thinking t-this may not be your pod. I mean you wouldn't really destroy us...me, would you?"

Bulma nibbled her bottom lip as she waited for Goku to answer, but when a minute passed with no response she started to get worried. Reaching out her gloved hand the heiress tapped a single finger on the younger boy's shoulder, only to shriek in surprise when Goku's body jerked violently.

The wild-haired boy's strong young body spun on the ball of one foot, before lashing out with a backfist and dropping into a defensive stance. Goku's mind was foggy, entranced by the voice he'd heard coming from the space pod, but hearing Bulma's cry of fear as he struck pierced that veil. Onyx eyes lost their unfocused glaze, and returned to focus when Goku blinked rapidly at the sight before him.

Bulma was curled into the fetal position, both hands brought in to clutch her chest. There were tears pooled at her tightly shut eyes, and whimpers of fear bubbled copiously from between her lips.

Those noises echoed through Goku's ears and shattered whatever strange hold that strange voice had held over him. And just as quickly as he'd moved before, the young martial artist found himself rushing to kneel down beside his guest.

"Bulma, are you alright? Did I hit you?"

Ocean-blue eyes fluttered open and the girl in question peered up through sparkling lashes to look at the younger boy who'd spoken. With a flinch of her trembling shoulders, the beautiful young city girl managed to shake her head 'no'.

Relieved that he had not harmed a non-combatant, Goku's next course of action was to give a deep bow of apology.

Bulma managed to stop her shaking after a minute, and after wiping her eyes clear of any held tears noticed that Goku was still bowing to her. Shocked that he was waiting for her, the blue-haired young teen softly forgave him.

"I shouldn't have surprised you like that, it's my own fault. B-But if you really want my forgiveness you'll have to promise not to...n-not to destroy us."

Hearing Bulma forgive him lifted a large weight from Goku's shoulders but, as he was moving to stand again, the monkey-tailed youth was shocked at her last words. And that's when his ears twitched from the replaying of the recording still playing in the background.

He was Kakarot...and he was meant to destroy the human race.

 _'But why?'_ The confused young fighter wondered. _'What point would there be in getting rid of all these people, they haven't wronged me. And besides, if I had carried out that order, I'd have never met Gohan or learned about the dragon balls.'_

Through the teachings of Gohan Goku had developed the belief that, the only people who would face his strength would be those who'd done wrong or stood in his way. So while his name may really be Kakarot he would not be _that_ Kakarot. He would not participate in mindless slaughter, he would not carry out that order.

"Don't worry Bulma," Goku assured her. "I have no plans to use my strength against anyone who can't fight for themselves; that includes you."

Bulma looked into the monkey-tailed boy's eyes as he spoke, and could see the sincerity of his words. And while Goku's pledge didn't necessarily mean he wouldn't react violently to anyone who got in his way, it was god enough for now. So, the blue-haired genius lifted a hand and allowed Goku to help her up.

"S-So, what's next?" Bulma's question trailed off, as she was unaware of whether to call the boy Goku or Kakarot.

This was something Goku caught quickly, but made no effort to address. Because, honestly, he didn't know how. While Gohan had given him the name Goku, the monkey-tailed boy felt a certain pull to the mystery that was Kakarot. So, instead, he answered Bulma's _spoken_ question.

"I guess we'll return to Gohan's home, and collect his dragon ball.

Bulma blinked owlishly for a moment, a little amazed he was able to brush what had happened off so quickly. Letting out an embarrassed laugh though, the blue-haired genius reached into her fanny-pack and pulled out one of her dragon balls again. "Just to make sure, you're _positive_ this is what you have back home?"

Just like the first time, when Goku's eyes locked onto what he was lead to conclude to be a dragon ball, he honestly had to admit not being very impressed. ' _It looks like an orange.'_

And indeed it did. The mythical treasure was not only the size of the citrus fruit, but also shared its brilliant color. The only true ways to distinguish it were if one were close enough, and able to see the glare given off by the sun and the large burnt-orange stars centered on one side. And yet, despite its lackluster appearance, Goku found there was a whisper in the back of his mind. One that hissed at him to take the ball. To find the rest, and to fulfill his deepest desire.

That whisper grew louder, more seductive the longer Goku stared. However the boy scrunched his brow tightly, and shut it out so as to instead tell Bulma that he'd indeed been telling the truth.

"Like I told you, Gohan had one with four stars on it. He told me it would be mine when he passed. I've left it cradled in its alter ever since though, because I never thought it was that important."

This news got a gasp of delight from Bulma, and she stepped closer to the wild-haired boy in excitement. "Can you show me, please? If you're telling the truth, that means we can get on our way collecting the rest."

Bulma's inclusion of him put a amused look on Goku's face. Because while he'd already decided he would offer to join Bulma on her quest, the young martial artist found it funny that the girl thought he wouldn't catch her blatant attempt at securing him as a bodyguard.

The look seemed to stay on Goku's face though because Bulma caught it, and immediately backpedaled.

"I-I mean, if you want to go that it. I-I just thought, ya know, that it'd be good for you; getting out and seeing the world and all. D-Don't you think Gohan w-would want that for you?"

"The dead don't want anything Bulma, it's one of the benefits of being gone. But don't worry, I'll tag along on your little adventure; if only to test my strength against the rest of your world."

With that said Goku crossed his arms and began to make his way out of the crater. It was with his back to her that the young boy didn't catch the look Bulma shot him at hearing the last of his agreement.

 _'He called it MY world. Does that mean he no longer considers Earth his? What if...what if he never did?'_

This worried Bulma. Because despite Goku/Kakarot's words that didn't mean the boy may not wind up changing his mind later. However, before the teenage heiress could ponder these thoughts any further, the object of her worries called down to her from the lip of the crater.

"Hey Bulma, you were so excited a minute ago. What happened? You've got me interested so lets not stop now."

Hearing this gave Bulma an idea. If she could keep the wild-haired alien interested in Earth, then he'd have no reason to destroy it. ' _The first step then, is this dragon ball hunt.'_

With her plan half-baked, but set, Bulma called out that she was coming and made her own way out of the crater. All thoughts of advancing space travel forgotten, and hopeful that she would never see that space pod again.

 _ **xXx**_

Upon returning to Goku's small home, Bulma was left wide-eyed in glee to find that he did in fact have the four-star ball. Squeaking in glee the blue-haired beauty shuffled quickly into the room and took the orange-sized orb into her gloved hands.

An orb that was just as swiftly snatched away.

Unprepared for the eye-popping showcase of speed Bulma's brain had to reboot itself before she could manage to stutter out a mumble of disbelief. "W-Wha—what are you..."

"We've got one more thing to discuss, before I hand this over. You have to tell me how you found the dragon balls."

"How I found them? You mean I didn't already tell you?" Bulma mentally berated herself for forgetting such an important piece of information, before once again reaching into her fanny-pack. This time though, what she pulled out wasn't a dragon ball, instead it was a large device. It was white, with a glass screen and a large button resting on the top.

Bulma moved so that she was holding the clunky machine directly in her new partner's field of vision, and went on to explain what it was.

"I used this; it's called a dragon radar. I invented it myself after my father brought me home my first dragon ball for my birthday. I'd looked up what the ball was because mine had two stars, and I was curious to know if it had been part of a set. When I found the legend I realized that they must give off some sort of magical energy; and since all energy can be tracked, I decided to come up with the radar to find the rest and make my wish."

Goku listened with honest attention, and by the end of Bulma's explanation he had to admit silently that the blue-haired beauty was, truly, a genius.

 _'Although it does seem strange she would be so interested in acquiring a 'matching set', as she put it. Bulma doesn't seem the type to care for such a trivial thing, as it does nothing to benefit her personally. I wonder, could it have anything to do with that voice I heard earlier?'_

Choosing to keep his questions to himself, Goku asked instead how it worked.

"It's pretty simple really," Bulma expanded her explanation. "There's a microchip in here that's been encoded with the energy signature of the dragon balls, so all I have to do is click this button at the top here and the radar will search anywhere from a few miles to across the world for any similar energies."

"But how do you manage to stretch it over the whole of your planet? What sort of technology do you have that allows for such a wide search?"

Goku's mind was completely tuned into hearing the answer, as the boy himself simply found such a thing too outlandish to believe. Just what kinds of amazing things had the people of Earth come up with while he was sheltered away in the woods?

Bulma's answer further cemented Goku's belief that she was an individual who superseded the rest of her species in terms of importance.

"My family owns most of the satellites that orbit the planet, so all I had to do was have them send up a patch for one that included the same form of transmitter my radar uses and install it."

The ease with which Bulma spoke of such things astounded Goku. Just how much influence did the girl and her family have? And what was a satellite?

Deciding that those questions could wait for later, Goku handed back the radar that he had taken to inspect as well as holding out his dragon ball. "Here, a deal is a deal. And if you're up to it, we can get started right away finding the remaining four."

With the return to the subject of finding the dragon balls, and subsequently her obtaining her wish, Bulma's face broke out into a delighted smile. Pocketing the newly acquired dragon ball into her pack with the others, the girl asked if there was anything Goku would need to bring with him.

"Just my power-pole," the monkey-tailed youth responded. "It was a gift from Gohan, and I'd rather not leave it here."

As he spoke Goku walked over to a chest in the corner of the alter and, after shuffling around in it for a minute, he retrieved what he was looking for. Bulma saw that it was a short, thick, stick. It was red in color, and held in a bright orange sheath. Goku slung the thing around his shoulder with the help of a train of rope before moving back over to Bulma.

"That's all I've really got besides a few changes of clothes, Gohan didn't much believe in material possessions. Said they distracted from training."

Bulma could think of nothing to say, as she'd never met Gohan nor taken up martial arts, so instead she simply told Goku that they could bring his extra clothes along if he could find a way to pack them. It was after this, and the addition of a makeshift backpack for the alien boy's clothes, that the duo finally exited the alter and got ready to start their journey together.

"Since you trashed my car we'll need something new to travel in," Bulma informed Goku. As she spoke, the blue-haired genius rooted around in her seemingly bottomless fanny-pack for a small case. Opening the white, plastic container Goku watched her pluck a single capsule from within, and toss it forward after clicking its top.

In an explosion of smoke that had Goku's onyx eyes widening in amazement, a motorcycle appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Granted Goku didn't know what it was he was looking at, it did nothing to further his amazement with the obvious brilliance Bulma and her family must have to come up with such a device as those capsules.

Looking on dumbly, the monkey-tailed martial artist had to shake the cobwebs from his brain when Bulma called to him this time; she was already seated on the bike.

"Are you just gonna stand there all day," she asked cheekily. "I thought you wanted to get a move on."

Hearing her use similar taunts to what he'd said earlier made Goku chuckle. Yes, Bulma was indeed an interesting individual.

 _ **xXx**_

Crystal-blue eyes fluttered open as Bulma's ears were filled with the sound of rustling sheets, mixed with huffs of exertion, and finally a loud ' _thump_ '. They came from outside her room, which could only mean one thing.

Goku.

The pair had stopped their journey at Bulma's own words, as it had been starting to get dark, and settled into the capsule house she'd brought along with her. After long minutes of giggling in amusement at the wonder-struck alien boy she chose for company, Bulma made them both dinner before taking a bath and going to bed.

Goku himself had to be taught how the shower worked of course, as he'd been in need of a bath himself, but other than that things went smoothly. He had then been given sheets, and directed towards the couch, where Bulma assumed he would sleep soundly enough for the night.

 _'Apparently I was wrong,'_ she thought before climbing out of bed. The girl had chosen an overly large pink t-shirt and white cotton underwear to sleep in, which she now coupled with fuzzy pink slippers as she shuffled into the living room. Upon arriving though, Bulma was shocked by what she found.

The couch was in shreds. Claw marks gouged into the once velvety soft upholstery, and sweat stains blotted the cushions.

Goku was rolling around on the carpeted floor, the sheets Bulma had given him now nothing but ribbons as he floundered around like a fish out of water. Upon closer inspection though, Bulma's keen mind quickly noticed that her guest looked as if he were in a fight. His fists were balled tight, and his brow was scrunched in a heavily concentrated manner. Not to mention the way Goku threw his limbs out like punches and kicks.

One of which caught the leg of Bulma's coffee table, and snapped it like a twig.

Finally letting her worry for the young alien's mental health take over, Bulma crept closer to Goku and began to voice her desire for him to awaken.

"Goku, hey Goku. Come on kid wake up; it's just a nightmare."

When that didn't work she tried again, only louder. But Goku seemed to still not hear her. With her worry rising, Bulma fully moved beyond the couch and was about to attempt shaking the monkey-tailed martial artist awake. Until that very same tail made it's self known, and showed that it was indeed very _real_.

"Aaah!" Bulma screeched as her ankle was slapped with what she equated to a big stick, and she in turn crumpled to the floor.

It was as she was cradling her newly bruised ankle that Bulma's mind connected the tail to a memory, and flashed back to earlier that afternoon; back to the space pod.

"K-Kakarot—Wake up Kakarot!"

The name was like a switch, and as the last syllable left Bulma's lips it flipped. Shown by the way Goku's eyes snapped open. The young alien's onyx eyes narrowed to slits, and he himself spun swiftly on his hands in a vicious helicopter-kick..

Bulma counted herself lucky that she had tumbled backwards during her fall to the floor, as the furious power she saw behind the move would have definitely suffered from broken bones.

Crystal-blue eyes watched as Goku finished his attack, and then continued to look on while he settled into a very feral looking pose. The alien boy's arms were tense, his biceps bulging under his skin, while the wild-haired martial artists fingers were flexed into claws. Goku's entire body looked tense; his legs coiled and ready to spring.

Being sure to keep her voice low, Bulma gently reached her hand out and whispered for Goku to relax.

"G-Kakarot? Hey, i-it's okay, there's no one here. Y-You can relax."

Bulma saw that her words had reached him, as the monkey-tailed youth's ears twitched upon hearing his original name. The blue-haired genius' searching eyes also noticed the way Goku's body just seemed to ease itself up almost immediately. His strained muscles loosened up, and the sharp look in his eyes rounded out.

And finally, Goku's breathing had settled from its erratic rush, to a heavy heaving. Sweat still poured over his mostly naked body, but the air conditioning on full blast was quick to cool him off.

When it looked as if he'd calmed down enough Bulma tried talking with Goku again.

"G-Goku? Hey, a-are you okay?"

The newly awakened alien child twitched when he heard his Earth name, but turned his eyes on the girl in front of him none the less. And then proceeded to stare at her for a number of minutes.

The staring itself wasn't so bad, Bulma would later admit to herself, as boys often stared at her. No, what bothered her was the look in Goku's eyes. They were feral, almost beast-like, but held an intelligence the likes of which did not belong to a boy his age. But there was something else as well, something hidden behind all of that. It was like Goku was seeing her for the first time, and assessing whether or not to lash out at her. Goku was seeing her, but at the same time seemed to be looking at someone else.

 _'Whatever he was having a nightmare about really shook him up,'_ Bulma concluded. She was about to ask her question again when her traveling companion seemed to snap back to himself, and with a shake of his head Goku mumbled out a response.

"I'm fine, sorry about your couch."

"That can be replaced," Bulma waved it off. "I'm more worried about what kind of nightmare caused you to react that way. What did you see?"

That seemed to be both the right, and the wrong question, as the monkey-tailed boy's eyes briefly lost focus again. It only lasted a few seconds this time, but when Goku blinked hard to reboot himself he answered that it had been nothing. "Just...just a replay of Gohan's death. He was mauled by a...a pretty dangerous animal."

Bulma could see right away that this wasn't the truth, but given the fact Goku felt the need to lie about it, the young heiress chose not to pry. Instead, she looked up at the clock on the VCR and voiced that she was going to make them both some hot chocolate. It was 6:00AM.

For Bulma, the silence they shared over their mugs was an uncomfortable one. She wanted so bad to ask Goku again about his dreams, but feared making him angry as that may lead him to take his dragon ball back. _'Not to mention it'd be rude,'_ the little voice that was Bulma's conscience berated her.

However she was saved from any attempts at awkward small talk when Goku's voice reached across the table to her.

"You called me Kakarot."

The sudden break of silence startled Bulma and caused her to jump a bit in her seat. But once she managed to get her heartbeat under control, the blue-haired beauty stuttered out a response.

"W-What?"

"Before, when you woke me up, you called me Kakarot." Goku himself had made short work of the contents of his cup, finding that he had a taste for the chocolaty beverage. But with it gone, the young martial artist found that he had only the bottom of his mug to stare into as he spoke.

"When I was having my nightmare, I heard you. Why did you use that name?"

Bulma simply stared across the table at the younger boy, his churning thoughts clear as the incoming dawn on his face. She could see that this was a big deal to him.

And that's why she chose to tell him the truth.

"Because you wouldn't respond to me when I called you Goku. But, when I called you...that other name, you woke up immediately."

Goku listened and attempted to process what he'd heard, but the ache he was feeling in his temples wouldn't let him. Peering up from his empty cup, the alien martial artist saw that the sky had begun to brighten with the new day.

Seeing this, Goku pushed his chair back and silently hopped down to begin making his way towards the door.

"Goku-" Bulma started to say.

"I'm going out to do my morning workout, I'll come back in later."

With that said, and the door closing, Goku was gone. Now left alone with her thoughts, Bulma allowed herself to worry about the future. More specifically Goku's future.

 _ **xXx**_

It was hours later that found young Goku finishing up the last of his exercises. The wild-haired alien had discarded his gi top and allowed the sun to beat down on his bare torso. Sweat poured from his body after finishing the last sequence of his final kata and his muscles ached from the beginnings of exhaustion.

But it had been worth it.

Throughout his routine Goku had flashed back to the nightmare he'd had. The one about the man he assumed was his father, fighting off a horde of enemies bloody and alone. It was the scene right before his death...right before he'd been awakened by Bulma.

 _'Only this time I heard another voice; his voice.'_ Goku thought with a furrowed brow. It had been intermingled with Bulma's own as she called to him, but the monkey-tailed boy was sure of what he'd heard. And it only made his inner turmoil churn that much harder.

Could he be Kakarot, but still be Goku? Or would he lose himself to the feral warrior that had shown itself last night?

However before the prepubescent young boy could ponder this line of thought anymore, his attention was drawn to what looked to be a moving boulder. Or at least, that's what it looked like before closer inspection revealed it to be a large turtle.

But what was a turtle doing so far inland?

"Excuse me, Mr. Turtle, but would you happen to be lost?"

The turtle gave a startled yelp at being addressed, but after whipping its head around a few times and seeing Goku the sea creature calmed down. "Um, yes actually, I've been tying to find my way back to the ocean for over a year."

Hearing this caused Goku to raise his brow in intrigue. A whole year? That was a long time. "You must be thirsty then, would you like some water?"

"Only if it wouldn't be too much trouble," the turtle accepted, "and if it isn't too much trouble could you point me in the right direction after?"

As Goku was lifting the turtle onto his back the young boy was about to tell him yes, and then he remembered his search. "Actually, I'll do you one better and take you there myself."

 _'If there's no dragon ball, I suppose I'll at least get my first real look at the ocean.'_ Goku decided as he carried the turtle back into the capsule house. Upon entering, he immediately noticed that Bulma had showered and changed since his exit.

Bulma was dressed in denim, hip hugging shorts with a form-fitting white t-shirt. Her hair had been undone from its side ponytail and instead worn in a lazy bun. The remaining drops of water from her shower gave Bulma's hair a certain shine to it, while her skin gleamed from the lotion she was currently rubbing into her forearms.

It was from the corner of her eye that Bulma noticed the return of her travel partner. The shower she had taken helped ease the girl's worries, but seeing Goku again honestly brought the head of those feelings peeking back from under the dirt. At least, it did before she noticed the monkey-tailed youth's new friend.

"Hey Goku, why do you have a turtle strapped to your back?"

"I didn't strap him, see, I carried him inside because I figured he was thirsty." It was as Goku was moving into the kitchen area to accomplish this task that he voiced his next idea. "And then I told him I'd carry him to the ocean, since he's lost. I figured if there's a dragon ball that way we'd kill two birds with one stone."

When she first heard what Goku had planned Bulma was a little miffed, as she felt there was no time for such heroics, but once he mentioned the dragon balls the blue-haired genius couldn't help agreeing heartily. Especially when, upon checking the radar, Bulma noticed there was indeed a dragon ball out that way.

And then she remembered how Goku planned on getting the turtle there.

"Wait, did you say you were gonna _carry_ the turtle to the ocean?"

"Yes, why?" Goku asked curiously.

Bulma's response was to drop her jaw. "Maybe because the ocean is a good hundred miles from here; and that turtle has to weigh at least a hundred pounds."

"That just means it'll make good training for me Bulma. Now, since you already look ready to go I think we should get moving."

"What about you, aren't you going to shower and change?"

Goku looked down at himself and saw that he was now covered in dry sweat, and that he had yet to replace his gi top. Shrugging it off though he said, "What's the point? I'll just get sweaty carrying him there anyway, and my gi won't feel very comfortable while I carry Mr. Turtle."

"Mr. Turtle?" Bulma asked with an amused expression covering her face.

With the two now outside, Goku had replaced the turtle on his back and looked ready to run. But hearing the playfully mocking tone in Bulma's voice had him answering back, "I'd prefer to not just call him 'hey you,' or 'the turtle'."

The blue-haired genius' response was to stick her tongue out before she pressed a button on the side of their house to re-capsule it. Once it was back inside her plastic case, she chose a new one and tossed it a few feet in front of her. This time when the smoke cleared it was a dirt bike.

Swinging her leg over the motorized bike, Bulma soon had the engine revved and ready to go. Turning to Goku she said, "Alright monkey boy, let's see how long you can keep up."

With that Bulma kicked the stand and hit the gas.

Goku let a challenging smirk fill his face as he let his legs spring off and rush to follow after her. Goku noticed quickly that Bulma wasn't using her bikes full speed, but that only made him want to run faster.

It was a constant inches race for the next two hours before they were stopped short. A large, armor-clad bear had stepped into their path. He was as big as the boulder he'd hidden behind, and covered in a burnt-orange fur with an eye-patch over one eye. In his hand was a vicious looking machete.

"Alright you puny bags of flesh, hand over the turtle and no one gets hurt!"

Bulma felt her heart drop into her stomach for a moment at the sight of the monstrous talking animal, but then memories of yesterday came to mind and she managed to calm down. If Goku could handle that dinosaur, he could handle this guy too.

Goku obviously thought so too. Because almost immediately after the bear's demand he let the turtle down, and told him to move away. "Sorry buddy, but that's not gonna happen. At least, not without you taking him from me."

The bear obviously thought his size was enough to win him the day, as it normally scared others into doing what he wanted, so he only chuckled throatily at Goku's challenge.

"Oh, monkey boy you have no idea how big a mistake you just made. I was willing to let you and the little Misses there go, but now, I'll eat you both first and save the turtle for dessert!" The bear's proclamation was punctuated with a heavy swing of his machete.

Despite her confidence in Goku Bulma couldn't help her stomach jumping into her throat at the shocking speed at which the bear moved.

Only to sigh in relief when she watched her adventure partner dodge it effortlessly.

And it didn't stop there. Goku went on to humiliate his enemy by showing no signs of struggle as he ducked and swayed away from each and every swing that came his way. He even seemed to disappear when the bear let out a roar and smash his blade hard into the ground.

The dust that had flown up from the blunt attack dissipated, and Bulma's crystal-blue eyes immediately found Goku's shirtless form perched lazily atop the same boulder his opponent had been hiding behind.

"Ya know, I expected you to be weak, but even this is just sad."

The bear heard Goku behind him, and startled a bit since he'd lost track of the small boy after lashing out in anger. Spinning on his heel, the blade-wielding bandit growled low in his throat at seeing Goku with an arrogant smirk on his face.

"So you think you're pretty fast, eh? Well then, let's see how well you move when it's not you I'm aiming for!"

Goku's onyx eyes hardened into a fierce glare, and his brow knitted strongly as he watched his opponent take the cowards way out. The large armor-clad bear wheeled around, and hurled his machete with all his strength in Bulma's direction.

Bulma didn't even have time to blink, and barely enough time to shriek in fear, before she watched Goku seemingly teleport in front of her to catch the blade with his bare hands. Only to drop it, and catch the bear's enormous fist with his smaller one when the bandit attempted to blind-side him.

"I was willing to just knock your lights out before because I didn't like your attitude, but now, I see there's only one thing to be done about a coward like you."

It was over before either Bulma or the Bear really knew what happened. Goku showcased an amazing feat of speed and hopped up into the air, coming down with a knife-hand strike to the bear's neck. But it didn't stop there. With his opponent now in shock, Goku whipped his leg out and used a full-force kick to crush the large mammal's windpipe.

The bear stumbled back from the force of the blow, and reached up with his massive hands in a feeble attempt to undo what Goku had done. Short, desperate gasps escaped the once cocky bandit's lips before finally he collapsed in a lifeless heap.

Bulma watched this and couldn't help the pang of pity she felt for the now dead thief. Yes, he had threatened them, but did Goku really need to go so far?

"Now that he's out of the way, let's finish up," Goku brushed off his kill as he hefted Mr. Turtle onto his back again. Looking over at Bulma he questioned how much farther they had to go.

"W-Wha...A-about ten more miles by the looks of the radar."

"Then let's hurry, I'm sure Mr. Turtle is eager to get home."

With that said, Goku took off again with tremendous speed. Bulma watched him for a moment before sighing, and revving her bike again to follow. She'd ask him later.

 _ **xXx**_

Later came when the trio made it to the sea, and Mr. Turtle asked them to wait for him to return. He had a present he wished to bring back for Goku.

It was during the time he was gone that Bulma approached the wading martial artist and brought up the subject of his killing.

"Um, Goku, can I ask you something?"

The monkey-tailed alien boy opened his eyes from their relaxed position and looked over at the older girl who'd spoken to him. "You just did, but I suppose you can ask me something else."

Ignoring Goku's cheek, Bulma voiced her concern about his nonchalance with killing. "I-I just...why did you have to kill that bandit back there? I mean, I'm not trying to sound ungrateful for you saving me, I just think there was a better way."

"I didn't kill him for you, if that's what you're thinking. I did it because he revealed himself to be a coward; something I'd already expected since his first move was to try and intimidate me with his size. That alone showed he didn't have any faith in his ability to beat me."

"Y-You killed him because he was a coward?" Bulma found that a hard pill to swallow.

"Yes. I true warrior would not have tried to use you against me, and then try for a blind-side after I saved you. He had no honor, no warrior pride, and for that he deserved death."

"B-But—"

"I don't see what your problem with it is; it was either you die, and then I kill him for murder, or save you and kill him for cowardice. Which would you have really preferred?"

Before Bulma could say anything in rebuttal, a new voice found its way into their conversation.

"I think the lady would have preferred you showed restraint, or mercy. And as a fellow martial artist I can't say I blame her; the art is not meant to be used for killing, but defending those close to us and offering a controlled release of our negative feelings."

Both Goku and Bulma's eyes turned to see that the voice came from an elderly man who was sitting cross-legged on Mr. Turtle's shell. He was dressed in a billowing button-up tropical shirt and knee-length shorts. He was bald, but had an impressive beard that connected with his mustache, and wore dinky sunglasses. Resting across his lap was a large-headed wooden staff, while strapped to his back was a large purple turtle shell.

"Big words coming from an old man in a turtle shell," Goku scoffed. "My point is clearly valid, and any self-respecting warrior can see that."

The elderly self-proclaimed martial artist looked down at the turtle he was riding on and asked, "Are you sure this is the kid that saved you? He seems a bit too self-important compared to what you were telling me about him."

"It is him Master; he offered to carry me here, and even fought to save me."

Goku watched as the man seemed to ponder something before he asked his name.

His answer came without hesitation: "My name is Kakarot, what's it to ya?"

The monkey-tailed alien youth ignored the glance Bulma sent him, and waited for the elderly man to reciprocate the introduction.

"Well my name is Roshi, and if you truly did do what my turtle says you did, then I am indebted to you. As a token of my thanks I'd like to give you a gift: my flying nimbus."

"Your what?" Goku asked with an incredulous look on his face.

Mr. Turtle chose to explain. "It's the Master's flying cloud; meant to only carry those who are pure of heart."

This interested Goku, but as he turned to look at Roshi he noticed something. "So then you're giving me this cloud because, being a pervert, you can't ride it huh?"

Bulma's eyes widened and her gaze shot between Goku and the elderly man before she sputtered out, "W-What do you mean he's a pervert?"

"I mean, he uses those glasses of his to hide when he's staring a girl down...like he's doing with you now."

Bulma's immediate response was to shriek in horror, and then to hide behind Goku. She shivered in disgust at the thought of being eyed by such a dirty old man, and now felt the need to shower.

"Oh, what do you know!? I've lived a long, hard life and deserve to admire the beauty of the world now. If that beauty happens to come in the form of a young, curvy girl I don't see the harm."

"You will with the black eye I'm about to give you," Goku scoffed. "That's all I need to hear to know you aren't the Roshi I thought you were."

Hearing this grabbed Bulma's interest. "W-What do you mean; where'd you hear of this old geezer?"

"From Gohan. I asked him once where he learned martial arts, and he told me how he'd studied under some legendary master known as Roshi. I thought it was this bozo because of the turtle shell,but there's just no way someone like that could be such a huge perv."

Roshi, tired of being talked down to by a kid, was just about to put the boy in his place when he replayed what the aforementioned boy had just said. "Wait, you knew Gohan?"

'He was my master; he took me in when I was little." Goku answered flatly.

"But last time I'd heard from my old student, he'd adopted a young boy named Goku. You told me your name was-"

Onyx eyes slivered. "My friends call me Goku; _you_ will refer to me as Kakarot."

Roshi's face began to redden in anger. How dare this twerp disrespect him like that! The elderly martial arts legend glared at Goku from behind his glasses before they gleaned at Bulma from their peripheral vision. Seeing the blue-haired beauty's voluptuous form gave the old lech an idea.

"All right twerp, if you're so sure I'm not Master Roshi let's make a bet. You and I will have a little match; if you win I'll follow through with giving you the nimbus. But if _I_ win...your friend there shows me her underwear-"

"No," Goku interrupted. "We aren't including a non-combatant in our competition. If you truly are a true warrior you'll do this because your honor is on the line and nothing more. However, if we're wagering something, you can offer up that ball around your neck instead of some silly cloud."

When Goku pointed at Roshi's neck, Bulma's crystal-blue eyes immediately found that the dragon ball they'd been looking for was hanging around the old man's throat.

"You want my dragon ball?" Roshi sputtered. "What makes you think I'm gonna give something like this to you; do you know what I could do once I manage to find all seven?"

"You know the legend too, good." Goku grinned as he continued, "A single, all-powerful wish is more than enough to wager don't you think?"

The Turtle Hermit didn't want to do it; the ball around his neck was practically screaming at him not to. But the man's pride was overruling the voice in the back of his head, and in seconds the martial artist agreed.

With the wager set both Goku and Roshi walked ten paces away from each other, and then turned to square off. Goku bent his knees and set his arms into defensive position. Roshi...just stood there.

Seeing this sparked a flare of anger deep inside Goku's core; not even Gohan treated him with such disregard. Tensing the muscles in his legs the monkey-tailed alien launched himself at full speed towards Roshi.

A speed that surprised the elderly man enough that Goku managed to land a glancing blow against his ribs. Even with his own great speed Roshi had to admit that Goku was fast.

Following his opening strike immediately after, Goku whipped around on the ball of his foot and swung a strong roundhouse-kick at his opponents stomach. When Roshi managed to catch his ankle though Goku improvised. Pushing off his still-grounded foot, Goku wound his other leg around at Roshi's face.

Roshi blocked the surprising strike with the head of his staff before using that same weapon to jab at Goku's open stomach. When the wild-haired boy managed a hasty catch with his hands Roshi was impressed, but not enough to hold back the power that pushed Goku back.

Goku barely had a second to touch the ground before he had to throw his forearm up to block Roshi's follow-up swing. The unreal strength behind the attack sent the monkey-tailed youth stumbling away, and left him open to the backhand swing that came next.

A sharp _'crack'_ filled the open ocean air as Goku took the full brunt of that attack, and the young martial artist mentally cursed as his mouth swiftly filled with blood. Unfortunately he didn't get a chance to think about the pain, because Roshi wasn't done. The old man's next move was to strike out with a spartan-kick.

Thankfully Goku was familiar with this attack pattern, and threw his arms up in a cross-block. With that blocked Goku quickly reached his left hand out to snag the man's ankle, and then jerked hard. Using the momentum of his maneuver, Goku spun on the ball of his foot again and introduced his elbow to the side of Roshi's knee.

Knowing such a blow would hurt his out of shape body Roshi showed off an unbelievable level of reflex. While his body was off center from Goku's pull, the elderly man pushed off the sandy beach and twisted his caught ankle from the younger fighter's grip. Flipping over Goku's elbow in the process.

Goku knew the danger of trying to press his attack at that moment, as he could get caught by a wild kick. So instead he waited impatiently for Roshi to stop spinning. As he waited though the young alien could tell something was...different. It happened during his spars with Gohan too; the change. It was a secret the young martial artist had kept to himself, one that he'd studied over the years he learned under Gohan.

His blood would race through his veins at an increased rate, and his body filled with an energy the like of which Goku knew wasn't normal. Gohan had introduced him to adrenaline during the beginnings of their spars but Goku knew this went far beyond that. Adrenaline made you sloppy, where as Goku's change _enhanced_ his ability. His senses sharpened, and his muscles flooded with a strength that was sure to be superhuman. And then there was his tail.

As Goku ducked one of Roshi's staff swipes he could feel the electric buzz that flowed through his newly wrapped tail, and seemed to fill every pore in his body. Side-stepping a jab Goku felt his body heating up from the new energy, and he let a fierce grin etch its way onto his young face as he caught Roshi's attempt at a snap-kick.

On his end Roshi couldn't believe what was happening. In the beginning sure, he'd been caught by surprise, but once he regained his cool the elderly martial artist knew he had the edge in the battle. But now, for some reason, Goku seemed to be more than capable of keeping up and even surpassing his speed!

 _'This call for drastic measures,'_ Roshi thought as he jumped away. Quickly, so as not to lose any time, the elderly martial artist shed his turtle shell. The purple weight dropped to the beach with a noticeable _'thud'_ , catching both Goku and even Bulma's attention.

"You've done well up until now Kakarot, but now I'm afraid the fight is over."

And with the way Roshi seemed to just disappear Bulma believed him...until she saw Goku block the man's elbow as he attempted a direct blow to the stomach.

What she didn't see though was the level of strain that it took for Goku to follow that move.

For Roshi it was enough though; to both satisfy his ego, as well as cement his considering thoughts. Deciding the match was over, Roshi jumped back a second time. Only now it was to replace his shell. As he finished settling the weight into place the old man noticed the confused but cautious face Goku was giving him.

"What are you doing, our fight isn't over."

"It is; I've seen all I need to. I believe you were the one who helped my turtle, and I also acknowledge your strength. So not only am I going to be giving you both the dragon ball _and_ nimbus...but I'll also accept you as my pupil."

While Bulma was whooping about gaining possession of a fourth dragon ball, Goku was eyeing Roshi with an unconvinced look.

"Just like that? But I didn't win; and who said I wanted to learn from you?"

"Yes, just like that. Because while you didn't beat me, you showed you have tremendous potential. No one has ever been able to catch one of my attacks after I've removed my turtle shell; not even Gohan after he finished his training. Dodge them, yes, but never _catch_ one. You have potential, and I want to help you reach it."

Goku looked between Roshi and Bulma, his mind working out what to do. It didn't take him long to come up with an answer.

"While I suppose I could accept your offer, it can't be today. I've already made a deal with Bulma to be her partner on a hunt for the dragon balls and I'd be breaking my word to her if I just left her behind now. So, thank you, but I'll have to take a rain-check."

What neither fighter saw though, was how touched Bulma was by Goku's proclamation, or the soft and sincere smile on her face as she also recalled what he'd said earlier.

 _'Only his friends call him Goku.'_

 **xXx**

 _ **A/N: There's chapter two of Warrior Instincts. For those of you who are wondering, yes, I've made the dragon balls into more than just bobbles to make a wish with. And, as I mentioned in my earlier note Goku IS smarter. I have him thought out this way because I believe, if he hadn't hit his head, Goku would be much more capable of understanding basic AND relatively complex concepts. I attribute this to his saiyan genes as well as his genes from Bardock.**_

 _ **I considered Bardock to be, while not a genius, a cut above the average saiyan. With that, I believe it would lead to Goku being someone with a higher IQ. Again this is just MY pov and interpretation.**_

 _ **As for Bulma? I wanted to flesh out how she actually GOT her first dragon ball, since its never actually stated in the original series. Also I explained a bit more of her family's influence. Which honestly I feel lost importance with the show after a while. I mean, come on, the entire world uses her family's products! She is definitely someone you would want to know! Not to mention how much influence they must have; so expect to see more on that as the story goes on.**_

 _ **Now for Goku's attitude. I know that, when it comes to the original Goku, Turles is meant to be the personification of who 'Kakarot' would have been but I feel that is only in the case of Goku staying on planet Vegeta and Bardock never having to rebel against Frieza.**_

 _ **I feel that his natural saiyan attitude would meld well with Gohan's teachings. Especially if I refuse to make Gohan a lecherous pervert; sorry, but Roshi is hard enough to write as it is. Anyway, Goku will have no aversion to killing an opponent, but will not do so without reason.**_

 _ **Also, his fighting skill. Goku, being the son of a warrior like Bardock(who I considered a prodigious saiyan) would lead him to being a very apt fighter. Which I tried to showcase here.**_

 _ **The 'change' I have Goku going through is obviously the rush of his saiyan blood as its fired up by fighting. I mention his tail because, subconsciously, he knows to protect it. And while he won't obviously learn about being a saiyan until Raditz arrival, I will still have Goku dealing with things I think a saiyan would go through.**_

 _ **Anyway, I just hope you all enjoyed this chapter and look forward to more. Feel free to review or PM me with anything you have to say...as long as its not a flame or anything overly harsh. I just don't see the point of leaving such things if you dislike the story...just stop reading it.**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch.3: Out of the desert and into the Fire; Wolves of the desert and the King of the mountain.**_

 _ **xXx**_

Onyx black eyes watched aimlessly as the scenery around them whipped by in a blur of green and blue. Goku sat in the back of Bulma's speedboat, and listened to its engine hum while thinking back over the last two days.

After their encounter with Roshi Goku had been gifted the nimbus cloud, while Bulma was handed the latest in their collection of the seven dragon balls. Once the elderly martial artist bid them goodbye Goku decided to test if his gift was worth keeping.

The puffy yellow cloud quickly became Goku's favorite mode of transportation.

Bulma's attempt to ride the cloud wasn't nearly as successful; she fell right through.

With that it was decided that while Goku rode the nimbus, Bulma would be forced to use her capsule vehicles. The fact that Goku needed to slow down for his blue-haired companion lead to them taking another full day to arrive at the next dragon ball destination: Aru Village.

Goku then remembered what it took to _get_ the six-star ball; and what Bulma had attempted to make him do.

The town had been terrorized by a monster who called himself Oolong; a 'demon' who could shape-shift. He had abducted three girls from the village, and was returning that very day to steal away a fourth.

Goku shuddered as he recalled Bulma's plan to deal with Oolong. The blue-eyed beauty had attempted to dress him up like a girl, and then have him be taken to Oolong's hideout before tearing into him and rescuing the abducted girls.

 _'Thank the sun and stars for my nose,'_ the young alien thought as he turned to look at the _real_ Oolong. Because while the small pig that sat beside him may not seem like much, Goku remembered the fight he'd been given after tracking the pipsqueak by his scent. Oolong's forms may only last five minutes each, but the rapid rate he could change at will surely kept Goku on his toes.

At least...for the first thirty seconds.

Once Goku learned that his opponent's powers were limited to simply changing his appearance, and did nothing for his physical prowess, the little pig quickly became an easy target for Goku's amazing speed and strength.

From there it was as easy as taking candy from a baby. The girls Oolong had kidnapped were returned to their families and Goku and Bulma were gifted with another dragon ball; leaving only two left to recover.

 _'Which reminds me,'_ he thought. Goku took his eyes off Oolong, and after getting Bulma's attention he asked where their next destination happened to be.

"If I'm right," the teenage genius answered, "we'll find the next dragon ball at a place called Fire Mountain."

At hearing their next stop, Oolong jumped in his seat before shrieking that such an idea was suicide. "Do you two not know about the legend of the Ox-King!? If we get anywhere within a hundred feet of his castle we'll be chopped to bits!"

The prospect of a new challenge got Goku's brow to raise in consideration, as he turned his eye back to the pig beside him. "I've lived in the mountains my whole life, so no, I have not heard of this Ox-King. What's so terrifying about him?"

"You mean other than the fact that he's almost eight-feet tall, and is over five-hundred pounds of pure muscle!? There's also his crazy strength; it's said the Ox-King can destroy whole mountains with the force of his punches. And don't even get me started on his battle-ax!"

Goku chuckled as he replied, "Alright, I wont. But I _will_ be challenging this Ox-King you seem so afraid of. It sounds like it could be fun."

Hearing this Bulma spared a glance over her shoulder at the monkey-tailed youth. "You can only do that if he gets in our way Goku, I don't need you running off on me to find him, and then leaving me alone with the pig to find the dragon ball."

"Well then you shouldn't have brought him along Bulma," Goku scoffed. "But I suppose you have a point; I can wait until we find the ball, and then go and find the Ox-King."

Oolong, having not actually been introduced to his equally small companion, chuckled as he taunted Goku about his name. "What kind of name is that; Goku?"

"One that you won't need to remember fool, because as far as you're concerned my name is Kakarot. And if I hear you refer to me as anything else I'll be introducing your face to my fist... _again_."

The shape-shifting pig made a noise in his throat, but crossed his arms and looked away before mumbling under his breath. "A pet name for a pet monkey; pretty sure you're a bit too young for her kid."

"And she's too smart for a buffoon like you, so I don't see your point."

Up front while she drove, Bulma couldn't help giggling as she listened to her and Goku's new traveling companion squawk in fear at being heard. _'He just learned that Goku has crazy god hearing. I bet he'll be more careful with his words from now on.'_

It was quite for a few more minute after that before the silence was broken by a loud, almost rumbling sound. Goku's stomach.

"Darn it, I haven't eaten since that night before meeting Roshi; Bulma, do we have anything to eat?"

Bulma hated herself for having to say it, but knowing Goku's stomach she told him anyway. "Sorry kid, but I think Oolong ate the last of it a half hour ago. Do you think you'll manage till we get to shore?"

"I kinda have to," the wild-haired boy tsk'ed. "But I guess if we have _pork chops_ for lunch I'll be alright with waiting."

It was only Oolong's knowledge that Goku/Kakarot would catch him, that the shape-shifter didn't try to jump from the boat and run. Luckily for him, since its occurrence leveled out Goku's temper, their arrival to shore needed only five more minutes.

While Goku was busy tying the boat to a tree, Bulma went about selecting the capsule house from her case and letting it appear on the scene in a colorful cloud of smoke.

"I don't know what I would do without my capsules," the teenage beauty sighed wistfully. Bulma felt her shoulders relax, and her muscles lose a great amount of their tension as she was immersed in the cool A/C of her personal mobile home.

"From what I can guess, you'd probably throw a tantrum," Oolong nonchalantly threw back. "You seem like the spoiled, city-princess type. Funny how you managed to snag the attention of a cavekid like Goku—ow!"

"I told you, my name is Kakarot," Goku reiterated after punching the talking pig in the back of his head. "Now if you're done being a bother, why don't you make yourself useful, and make Bulma and I something to eat."

"Awful thoughtful for a kid who says there's nothing going on between you two," Oolong muttered with a sneer. However he did wind up doing as Goku told him, and headed to the kitchen while rubbing the lump left behind by the martial artist's fist.

It was as they were left alone, and Goku noticing the look Bulma was giving him, that the young alien decided to elaborate on his actions.

"You are, in my opinion, my first friend Bulma. Whether you consider me one or not is up to you, but just know that is how I see you. And as such, along with you being a girl as well as a genius, I respect you. It's these feelings that won't let anyone down-talk, or mistreat you in anyway. You've already done a lot for me just by introducing me to a world beyond my mountain home, and I just hope to repay your kindness."

Bulma looked down at Goku with eyes lit with astonishment. She had not expected the boy's reasoning to be so...sincere. Sure, he'd alluded to her being his friend during his meeting with Roshi, but to hear him say it to her face had Bulma feeling dizzy. No one had ever been so upfront, or heartfelt with her.

Yes, boys from her school or around West City threw catcalls or wolf-whistles her way on a daily basis, and she even got the occasional flash of lust during a good make-out session. But Bulma had never had a _real_ friend before either; the girls were too green with envy, and the boys couldn't look her in the eye long enough to know their color. So instead Bulma gave them what they saw, and what they wanted, in return for attention and shallow affection.

But Goku...

"Goku...thank you. I-I think of you as my friend too."

It was all the normally talkative girl could mange to say. Knowing she would need a moment to herself, the blue-haired girl quickly shot her friend a demure smile before excusing herself and heading to her room.

Left behind at the front door Goku looked on at Bulma's bedroom door for a few seconds, before he decided she probably didn't want to talk, and then making his way into the kitchen where he smelled food. _'I'll ask her why she was crying later.'_

Later wouldn't come though, because while Goku ate his lunch Bulma would fall asleep in her bed. It wouldn't be until the sun rose the following day that she awoke, and by then the pair knew that the hunt needed to come first.

"Alright gang, here's the deal. I've looked over the map and decided our best chance at a quick shot to Fire Mountain is by going through the Diablo Desert. Unless, of course, you have a problem with that Oolong?"

Bulma turned her scrutinizing gaze on the trembling pig as she finished her explanation. She was dressed for the day in a pair of soft cotton shorts and a white tank-top. Her hair was pulled up into a tight ponytail to keep her long hair from helping over heat her face, and sneakers covered her feet in case she needed to make a run from any danger.

On Bulma's suggestion Oolong was dressed in a pair of overalls and sneakers, with his green hat placed atop his head. The round little pig was indeed shaking though, as he listened to where they were going.

"Of course I've got a problem toots! Don't you know who lives in that desert; Yamcha, the Wolf-man. He's said to sneak up on you in the night, steal your valuables, and then slit your throat so fast you'll think ya dreamed being alive!"

At hearing Yamcha's moniker Goku let out a snort of amusement. "First a demonic Ox-King, and now a prowling wolf-man? Really pig, you've got to come up with better stories than that if you're gonna try and scare me."

"They ain't just stories k-Kakarot!" Oolong shouted as he got nose-to-nose with Goku. "And you'll learn the hard way soon enough if you don't listen to me!"

Goku caught how the frightened porker had almost called him a kid, and silently patted his own back for being able to instill such fear into someone else. However, that thrill paled in comparison to the opportunity to face this 'Yamcha'.

Knowing the chain of command however, Goku turned his eyes away from the snout in front of him. Turning to Bulma, he asked if it would be alright to challenge the desert bandit.

"Just like I said with the Ox-King; if he gets in our way, yes. Otherwise I need you to stay where I can see you, alright?"

"Fare enough," Goku nodded in agreement. The wild-haired alien from the mountains was garbed in a thin, pure-white gi. It was the one he normally wore during spars with Gohan, and was made specifically to be light-weight and easy to move in. On his feet were his ever-present black slip on shoes, while his power-pole was secured to his back.

"Then it's settled," Bulma beamed. And with a toss of her hand, her dirt bike sat waiting for her. Once Goku climbed aboard his nimbus cloud, and Oolong was securely tied to the bike seat, the trio were off.

 _ **xXx**_

For the hundredth time since they entered the Diablo desert, Bulma found herself mentally thanking her father for starting Capsule Corp. Her dirt bike had helped her cover over a third of the vast and sandy landscape in under two hours, something that would be impossible on foot.

And while the air was on the dry side, Bulma found she only needed to stop every half hour to take a break.

A break that seemed to be upon the group again, as the buzz of Bulma's engine slowly quieted and then stopped. Up above on his cloud, Goku peered down at the duo on the motorized machine and couldn't help rolling his eyes. They were stopping again?

Yet it seemed unable to be helped, and within minutes Goku was standing underneath a shaded rock formation. He watched as Bulma drank from the canteen she'd filled back at the river, and was about ready to say something about her constant need to stop, when the alien boy's super hearing picked up a sound.

It was one he'd become accustomed too since meeting the blue-haired girl in front of him. It was the sound of a gas-powered, motor vehicle.

The noise was coming from far out, that much Goku was sure of, but what caught his attention was the _direction_ it was moving. It seemed to be heading straight for them. Thinking back to what Oolong had said earlier Goku quickly deduced that it must be Yamcha.

 _'He must have a watch tower; one that's tall enough to where he can scope out large areas of the desert at once.'_ Goku thought before turning his attention back to the other two dragon ball hunters.

"I think it'd be a good idea for you to hide Bulma. I'm picking up a strange sound, like one of your motor bikes, and it could be this Yamcha guy Oolong was talking about."

When she heard this Bulma's eyes bugged from their sockets, and she let out a shriek as she asked if Goku was sure. "I-I mean, maybe you're wrong, a-and it's just someone else passing through the dessert?"

"Even if it is, I'd rather you be hidden until we're sure. If this Yamcha is as deadly as the pig says I don't want him knowing about you; he might try and take you hostage."

Goku's reasoning was sound and, while she didn't like the thought of leaving her new friend to fend for himself, Bulma also knew that she would just get in the way if she stayed. So instead the blue-haired beauty scurried her way behind the formation they'd been shading under, and waited with baited breath to be given the all clear.

Back with Goku Oolong attempted to make his own escape, only to be caught by the back of his shirt by the boy in question.

"W-What are ya doin', let me go! Y-You said it yourself Kakarot; Yamcha's coming this way!"

"Which is why I need you to stick around Oolong," Goku rebutted calmly. "You'll stand here beside me, and if Yamcha does show up I want you to use your shape-shifting ability to give him a scare. That'll help lower his guard, and that's when I'll go in for the attack."

By the time Goku finished voicing his plan Oolong had managed to actually calm down enough to realize, it was a good idea. Although the pig did question why the martial artist was using such an underhanded tactic. "It just doesn't seem like your style kid."

"That's because it's not," the monkey-tailed alien snorted. "But with Bulma possibly in danger I'd rather not take the chance. I wanna take this guy out fast, and without too much energy needing to be spent. After all, if I tire out here, I won't be able to face the Ox-King once we reach the mountain."

 _'And_ _there_ _it_ _was_ ,' Oolong thought to himself as he eyed the kid beside him. ' _Beneath_ _Kakarot's noble gesture is the nugget of selfishness.'_

The talking pig didn't get to mutter for long though, because as his thoughts reached their end a cloud of dust emerged on the horizon. Too small to be a dust storm, Oolong squinted to get a better look and saw that it was being caused by a hover bike.

A _wolf-shaped_ hover bike.

It was Yamcha.

Knowing what was coming Oolong's body started to tremble in fear. He was no fighter, and worried that, if the rumors he'd heard were true, Kakarot would stand no chance either. The only thing stopping the swine from hightailing it out of there was the grip Kakarot had on his shoulder.

"Stay calm and trust me. My plan will work, but only if you relax."

Yet despite his words Goku could still clearly see that Oolong wanted nothing more than to crawl under a rock.

 _'At this rate, I'd be better off switching him for Bulma.'_ Goku thought sardonically to himself. However the humor of his thoughts was shut away, when the capsule vehicle veered around the pair in a doughnut, and its driver leaped off. They pulled a double somersault in mid-air before landing in a kneeling pose, their back to both Goku and Oolong.

It didn't remain so for long though, and within moments of their dismount the figure rose and then turned to greet the smaller pair. The person revealed themselves to be a man.

The newcomer stood a good two and-a-half heads taller than Goku, with broad shoulders and build that spoke volumes about the amount of hours the person put into working his muscles; however their development seemed to have been hindered by a lack of knowledge, leaving them looking oddly out of place. He had wild, jet-black hair that fell to between his shoulders with bangs, and narrowed eyes that stared inquisitively at Goku and Oolong. The older teen, because Goku easily noticed the boyish look that still made up the older males face, was dressed in baggy orange fighter pants and a green sleeveless gi top. There was an orange scarf tied around his neck, and a white sash around his waste. Positioned behind his back Goku easily made out a sword.

And then Goku noticed the flying cat that hovered over the man's shoulder.

 _'Odd,'_ the monkey-tailed martial artist thought. But his voice was soon needed when that very cat let out a screech.

"I knew it," the cat called out in a high-pitched and feminine voice. "I knew it was you I saw _Oolong_!"

Goku turned a quick side glance towards the pig in question and asked, "You know her?"

"O-Only in passing." The stuttering porker lied.

"I wouldn't call bullying me throughout all of shape-shifting school 'in passing' you swine!" Then, the cat turned to the young man beside her and wailed, "Yamcha you've gotta make him pay! H-He used to stick my head in the toilet and everything!"

Goku's ears twitched at this piece of news.

"So you are the Desert Bandit then?"

"Depends on who wants to know," Yamcha rebutted with a raised brow. The kid in front of him had hiked his curiosity back at the lair. When Puar had handed him the telescope, Yamcha had immediately noticed the power-pole slung over the younger boy's shoulder. And there was only one man in the world who owned that.

"My name is Kakarot, and I challenge you here and now to a one-on-one."

Goku knew, the second he heard that cat speak of 'shape-shifting school', that his plan had been thrown out the window. Now his best bet was the element of surprise that came with being underestimated due to his age.

"A challenge? Well, that's a new one," Yamcha scoffed as he folded his arms. "Usually those who meet me cower in fear, begging for their lives, or gurgle in their sleep after I've cut their throats for being difficult."

"Well I'd wager those people didn't feel too keen on handing over their belongings to a thief," Goku countered. "But at any rate, I don't actually have all day. And since I know you won't let us through without taking our stuff, this fight will decide whether or not we hand it over."

Yamcha's brow furrowed in annoyance; this kid's mouth was starting to annoy him. But never the less, Yamcha soon found himself shifting into his opening stance and giving Kakarot a smug grin.

"If that's the way you want it kid. Just know I'll be taking Gohan's power-pole when I beat you. A weapon that famous doesn't belong in the hands of a child."

Goku had settled into his own stance, and eyed his opponent with expectation. The younger boy's muscles tensed for action, but in his minds eye Goku felt no worry. Only hunger.

The hunger for battle.

Hovering a little ways off from her master, Puar eyed the young boy who called himself Kakarot. When she'd first spotted the pair in front of her Puar had been sure there was a woman with them, and had made sure to direct her master's eye so he didn't see her. But now, with Yamcha about to engage in battle and the girl nowhere in sight, Puar could only hope she didn't suddenly reappear. Or else Yamcha wouldn't stand a chance.

An impatient person Yamcha quickly grew restless. With a speed that outclassed many, he drew his sword, and rushed at his opponent.

Unfortunately for the thief, Goku wasn't like his other conquests. The wild-haired boy easily tracked the Wolf of the Diablo desert's movements, and deftly blocked an overhead strike with his staff. The power-pole's legendary wood made it more than capable of taking the full weight of Yamcha's sword strike, and allowed Goku to push the blade away and leave behind an opening.

"Power-pole extend!"

All eyes watched as Goku's weapon glowed like a poker, and then swiftly grew in length. The wooden staff pushed forward and buried itself in Yamcha's stomach, sending the older boy flying backwards.

With his opponent sailing away, Goku threw his weapon forward into the sand, and then used it as a springboard to launch himself into the air. From there he came down on Yamcha like a hawk, spearing him in the chest with a powerful elbow.

Yamcha felt all breath leave his body as he slammed to the ground; the vicious pain in his chest assured him that a number of his ribs had been cracked as well. Yet despite this, the bandit managed to shuffle to his feet, and face his adversary again. Bringing his sword up, parallel with his face, Yamcha pushed off his right foot and launched another attack.

Being closer than before, Yamcha's longer reach came in handy this time. However when his jab managed to nick Kakarot along the cheek, the desert bandit allowed himself to become overconfident and miss the way his opponent's eyes hardened at being touched.

"Ha! It seems I've drawn first blood; it's only a mater of time before you're beaten kid. I knew last time was just a lucky shot!"

Feeling the sting of his newly acquired scratch caused Goku's fierce smirk to turn a bit more feral. It was a small wound, but then the boy had never known true competition before. With only Gohan to spar against, he had never known what it was like to truly taste battle, or the possibility of stolen victory.

That last thought caused Goku's eyes to narrow into hard slabs of onyx, and with lightning-fast reaction he threw a right-hook that caught Yamcha in the face. It was then Goku's turn to be surprised though, when his opponent used the momentum of the hit to his advantage and worked it into a roundhouse-kick.

Unfortunately for the thief though, Goku's reflexes had been fine-tuned under Gohan's eye. The monkey-tailed youth easily brought his power-pole up with both hands and blocked the strike. From there he centered himself, and taking careful aim, activated the mythical weapon a second time.

Instead of the stomach, which was where Yamcha had threw up a hasty defense, Goku's staff struck true against the desert bandit's chin.

The speed at which the weapon hit was enough to knock Yamcha from his feet and send him sprawling onto his back. The young man tasted blood in his mouth from where he'd bitten his tongue, and that throbbing pain quickly had his pulse racing in anger.

This was _his_ desert! And no stupid kid was gonna make a fool out of him on his own turf!

Swiftly rolling back onto his hands Yamcha coiled up, and then launched himself feet first at his smaller opponent. When the attack was ducked under, and they now stood back-to-back, Yamcha tried for a donkey-kick.

 _'Nice try,'_ Goku thought as he turned sharply to catch the offending boot. Then, just like with Roshi a few days before, the wild-haired alien jerked hard to unbalance his opponent. This is when Goku discovered that, while Yamcha obviously had skill in combat, the bandit was by no means a martial artist.

Because instead of being able to right himself, the shaggy-haired teen promptly fell to his back.

From his place in the sand Yamcha felt his pride as a fighter shake. He was going all out against this kid, but this Kakarot seemed to be at least two steps ahead of him at every turn. Meaning his only true hit had been a fluke...a lie.

Anger swelled in Yamcha's chest. This couldn't be how it ended, right? Bested by some kid!? No, if word got out he'd be a laughing stock. No one would ever fear the Desert Bandit again. And Yamcha couldn't have that!

With a vicious snarl Yamcha thrust his other leg out in a wild attempt to catch his opponent off-guard.

It proved futile. Goku simply caught it with his other hand after dropping his staff. From his place above Yamcha, it made no difference that the alien boy was a number of years younger than the bandit. With the sun casting shadows across the young martial artist's face, he looked every bit the conquering warrior.

"I came here hoping to find a challenge; instead all I got was an over-inflated boogie man. You may be enough to overcome the average traveler, I'll admit, but you are in no way a true martial artist. And while I may have been caught by that sword of yours, don't think for a second that, if I'd really been serious, that you would stand a chance against me. They call you a wolf...but all I see is a weak puppy."

With his piece said Goku relinquished his hold on Yamcha, who had been struggling throughout the entire speech, and turned his back to the older boy.

"Oolong, let's go. Bulma that includes you too; this guy's no threat to us, so it's all right for you to come out."

Bulma. The name pierced through the fog of anger that clouded Yamcha's mind, and caused his heart to stop. Bulma was a girls name. Surely there wasn't a...a _girl_ this far out in the desert!? His paralyzing fear of the fairer sex had been Yamcha's main motivation for venturing into the sweltering heat; to escape being made a fool of at school, and later hopefully amass enough money that no one would ever dare laugh at him again.

But if a girl had shown up here, in his domain, Yamcha knew there would be nothing left of his reputation once Kakarot got a look at what happened after this 'Bulma' revealed herself.

It was as the blue-haired beauty stepped out, that both Yamcha and Puar knew he was doomed.

Yamcha's pupils shrunk, and his breath caught in his throat at the vision of perfection that wandered onto the scene. He took in every inch of her creamy, exposed skin, traced over every curve outlined by her fitted clothing, and felt his throat close up at the stunning shine of her eyes. Yamcha had been a ruffian back home, with what many city-goers would call 'unrefined' taste. But one thing was perfectly clear to the young man at that moment: Bulma was beauty personified.

Yet while the floundering thief ironically had his heart stolen, the woman who'd taken it had a far different opinion of him.

As she'd stepped out from behind the rock formation she'd been hiding behind Bulma's eyes immediately sought out her friend. She had to make sure he was really okay, and hadn't been forced to call her. Once it was confirmed Goku was alright, the young genius let her gaze drift across the rest of the scene until she caught sight of a boy around her age laying in the sand. A boy, she summarized, who must be Yamcha.

Looking at him Bulma's brain came up with two words to describe him: dirty and unimpressive.

She could see that his long, wild hair only held such a look because of how unkempt it was. And she could see there was no luster to his mane, meaning any who ran their hand through it would likely come away with numerous broken strands. His body was built, sure, but not in a sculpted fashion. It was more like lumps of muscle hidden beneath his skin. And over those lumps were clothes that looked to be riddled with uneven stitches and stains.

Then, there was his face. While Bulma was sure that Yamcha had been cute at some point, that had been a long time ago. Now, the teen's face was sprinkled with small pimples that were hidden beneath a layer of dirt and grime. There was a certain amount of puppy fat around his cheeks and chin too, which gave him a heavy sort of look, and his teeth were unclean.

Over all, Bulma found her nose wrinkling in disgust as she turned to Oolong and asked, "So _this_ is the deadly bandit you were so afraid of? He looks more like a high school kid who hasn't gone through puberty yet."

"He fights like one too," Goku added. "But it's over now, so let's just go. I wanna get to Fire Mountain before I'm as old as Gohan. Nimbus!"

All eyes watched as Goku's newest companion came zooming, seemingly, out of nowhere. The fluffy yellow cloud moved fast, but stopped perfectly in front of its new owner. Hopping onto the speedy puff, Goku turned his eyes towards Bulma and Oolong to tell them it to hurry up.

Or at least, that was his plan before he heard Bulma shout at him to 'watch out'.

Yamcha's vision was blood red, and his tunnel vision had only one thing in focus. Kakarot; or rather Goku, as he'd heard Bulma call him. How dare that kid dismiss him that way, and in front of a beautiful girl no less! Such a thing was unforgivable. Kakarot didn't think he was a challenge? Then Yamcha would show him his _Wolf Fang Fist_ , and change the brat's tune.

...And maybe impress Bulma too, his subconscious mind whispered.

" _ **Wolf Fang Fist!**_ "

Goku watched the first, claw-like hand reach out to strike him. But instead of dodging, the young martial artist showcased his superior speed by catching Yamcha's wrist.

The shock was enough to halt the older boy to the point his next attack stopped halfway through. Yamcha's right hand, still poised in a claw, halted steadily beside his cheek. From his angle Goku could easily see the look of disbelief that had plastered its way onto Yamcha's face.

"H-How did you—no one's ever managed to stop my attack before..."

"It's like I said; that's only because you've never faced a true martial artist before." Goku's mouth morphed into a fierce scowl, one seemingly impossible for a child, and leaned forward to whisper in Yamcha's ear.

"And if you ever try something like that against me again, I'll break more than just your wrist."

Before Yamcha could correct his foe about the broken bones, he was cut off by his own howl of pain. Goku had just snapped the bones in his wrist.

As the defeated bandit dropped to his knees Goku once again turned his back and told Bulma and Oolong it was time to go. "And this time I mean it; no more distractions, no more breaks."

While Bulma grumbled at her friend's shot at her, she did as he said and released her dirt bike for travel. Once Oolong was tied up, and in turn her body safe, the blue-haired genius mounted her bike and revved the engine.

Soon enough, the trio were gone and out of sight. But what they didn't see was the look Yamcha sent their way as they left him behind.

 _'Fire Mountain huh?'_

 _ **xXx**_

The threesome made quick work of the remainder of Diablo Desert, and just as the sun began its descent from the sky they exited the sea of sand. What came after didn't look much better however.

The Ox King's village looked to be in shambles. The people they saw looked despondent and hopeless, like their lives had no meaning. Their homes were engulfed in the orange light of their King's blazing castle, which showcased each crack and patch job. There was no sign of anything green either; no trees, not even a shrub. It seemed as if the fire had simply sucked the village dry of life.

"It must be because there's no money coming into the village," Bulma theorized. "I mean, what with the horrible stories surrounding the Ox King, as well as the lack of transportable goods, it's no wonder these people look so miserable."

"What do you mean Bulma?" Goku questioned. "Transportable goods? And what do the stories have to do with anything?"

"By goods I mean things like fruits or vegetables, or even something like jewelry or fabric for clothes. These types of things are sent out or brought in to sell and make money; but because of the heat produced by the fire their income is being drastically cut because they aren't able to grow crops or raise livestock like cows or chickens. In the case of the stories Goku, you have to understand that not everyone is enthralled by the idea of facing a giant with an axe. Most people, in fact, are terrified of such things. And because of their fear they don't bother to come to this village; which means the villagers aren't able to sell their goods at home either. Again hurting them financially; do you get it?"

"I...think so. The fire keeps them from having things to sell outside, and the rumors scare away anyone who could buy from the inside. Is that right?" Goku had indeed made an attempt to follow Bulma's explanation, but had to pick away the bigger words he didn't know to come up with one he could grasp.

"You got the main points, so good job kid." Bulma gave her monkey-tailed friend a small smile of pride as she complimented him. Goku may have been raised in the mountains, but it was quickly becoming apparent to Bulma that he was actually smarter than an average kid.

 _'I wonder if it has anything to do with wherever he came from,'_ She thought as they began to make their way to the castle.

With the bike and nimbus cloud the trio made the pass through the village quickly and soon found themselves standing a few yards away from the blazing inferno that was Fire Mountain.

Bulma sucked her teeth as she looked at the blip on her dragon radar. "Tch, well, the good news is we know exactly where the ball is. The bad news is...how don we get it out?"

"Maybe monkey boy can take his cloud and get in there—ouch!" Oolong yelped when, in the midst of offering a suggestion, Goku walloped him in the shoulder. "What the hell was that for!?"

The look Goku gave the angry pig quickly cooled the shape-shifter's ire. It was a hard look, one that seemed like it could cut stone, and it was aimed directly at Oolong. "I let it slide earlier with Bulma, but don't call me monkey boy."

"Alright, geeze," Oolong muttered. "But that still doesn't answer my question. Why don't you just fly in and get it?"

"Or how about I throw _you_ in, and you can get Oolong? I mean, even if that doesn't work, at least after you've been roasted Bulma and I'll have something for dinner later."

Oolong's eyes narrowed in fury but he dared not make a remark. He'd learned quick that Goku only afforded him so much slack, and once that was used up Oolong usually found himself in tremendous pain. Thankfully, in a way, he was saved by a new voice.

"And just what is it you three are looking to steal from _my_ castle?"

Bulma screeched in fear while Goku whirled around to face who had spoken. When his eyes landed on the obvious culprit, the young boy felt excitement shoot through his veins. Because there, standing before him,was the mythical Ox King.

As Oolong had said, the man stood as a giant. He easily dwarfed the three of them put together, and his body, hidden beneath a mix of cloth and armor, looked to be made of solid muscle. Atop hit head sat a helmet, which had two horns curving out from the sides, while a cape billowed lightly behind him. Then Goku's eyes scanned a little further down, and he found the rumored battle axe gripped tightly in the Ox King's massive hand.

The very fact such a large and undoubtedly heavy weapon was being held with such ease ensured Goku that, at least physically, the Ox King was formidable.

Not dropping his stance, Goku answered the man's question. "We've come to collect the dragon ball you have hidden away inside your castle."

"So then you all know of the legend too? I'm not surprised, many thieves have come seeking that little ball. And just like them you three can either leave peacefully now or I can give each of you a one way ticket to the afterlife."

Goku could see Bulma trembling in fear from the corner of his eye, but didn't lower his guard or turn to comfort her. To do so without knowing anything about his adversary's abilities was foolish.

"What if I accept that challenge," He shot back. "What if, you and I have a match, and if I win we get to have the dragon ball? I'm sure it's been a long time since you've had a good workout Ox King."

Hearing Goku's offer the Ox King scoffed. "While you may be right, I don't think a child like you could ever give someone like me a true challenge."

"Not even if a child like me was trained by Gohan?"

Hearing this caused the Ox King to do a double take; his eyes widening to the size of oranges. As he gawked at the young boy in front of him though, the Ox King finally noticed the staff that was slung over his back.

"You...have Gohan's power pole." He fumbled out. "G-Gohan never went anywhere without his power pole."

Goku nodded, but just as he was starting to think the Ox King was ready to believe him, noticed the larger man's face contort into an angry snarl. Then, his ears were filled with the sound of a growl before the Ox King spoke again.

Only, Goku couldn't believe what was said next.

"You must have stolen it."

Goku gave the monarch a look of pure disbelief mixed with anger of his own. Theft? Only someone with no sense of honor would stoop so low, how dare the Ox King accuse him of such a thing. It was made even worse that he'd been accused of stealing from _Gohan_ of all people!

However, before the monkey-tailed fighter could argue his case he was forced to jump back. The giant fist that came at him missed, but the roundhouse-kick that came just a moment later was a much closer call. Still crouched from ducking Goku jerked his staff from its place on his back, and called out for it to extend. There was a satisfying ' _thwack_ ' as the end smacked clean against the Ox King's helmeted head.

The burly king stumbled back as his vision blacked out for a flash of a second. Knowing the risk, but hoping the pay off would be worth it, Goku took advantage of this small window and pressed his attack.

Taking a couple steps forward, Goku drove the power-pole into the earth before using it to haul himself up into the air. From his new perch the wild-haired boy lashed out with a vicious kick; this time aiming for his opponent's large throat.

Unfortunately, the Ox King proved himself a durable man as he quickly recovered from Goku's first attack, and easily used his beefy forearm to block the vaulted kick. Then, with his opponent now within reach, the older man reached out his other hand and caught Goku's ankle.

In the moments right before his thoughts were filled with the feeling of pain, Goku mentally cursed. Then, a horrible pain exploded from his knee as it was slammed by the large hand not holding his ankle. Gnashing his teeth to keep from crying out, Goku barely registered hitting the dirt as he was let go.

Standing over the writhing youngster, Ox King didn't even try to hide his smirk as he spoke down to his fallen opponent.

"Wow, you were right kid, that was a heck of a challenge." The condescension was thick in his voice, and those listening could clearly hear the bit of mocking laughter that had mingled with those words.

It got Bulma's hackles to rise.

While Oolong looked on in cowardly terror at the scene, Bulma could only see red. Like Goku, she too had been angered by the Ox King's false accusation of how the boy had acquired his staff. But that anger had simmered, replaced by a smug sort of joy, when she watched Goku not only dodge the larger man's attacks but also land the first blow. It looked like another win for the kid.

Only for that joy to shatter, much like Goku's knee must have, as her friend was dropped on the ground like a sack of potatoes. And then anger was brought back to a boil at the man's words. Who did this guy think he was? How dare he mock Goku!

With her anger now in the driver's seat, Bulma huffed before she began to march over to the gloating monarch. Oolong's babbling was lost on her as she heard only the sound of Goku seething in pain.

It was when her blazing eyes caught sight of Ox King leaning down to take the power-pole that Bulma finally spoke. "Don't even think about it!"

Ox King heard the shout, and when he looked around to find where it came from, was surprised as well as annoyed to see that it was just the girl that had tagged along with the thief he'd just dropped. Waving his large hand in a dismissive gesture he told her, "Be gone you filthy girl. Your thieving friend has lost, and as the victor I am well within my rights to take what I wish for reward. I will be taking the power-pole he stole, and returning it to its rightful owner."

"Well then I suppose you leave it where it is, you big oaf, because Goku _is_ its rightful owner. Gohan _gave_ him the staff before he died!"

That last word sparked a new emotion within the chest of the burly king, one that replaced the rising fury at being spoken down to by a silly commoner. That new emotion happening to be fear.

Fear that his oldest friend was really gone.

With his eyes wide in disbelief, Ox King managed to swallow the lump in his throat long enough to croak out, "W-What?"

"That's right buddy," Bulma hissed. "Gohan raised Goku like he was his own flesh and blood, even trained him in martial arts, before giving him the power-pole-"

"NO!" Ox King cut her off. "Stupid girl, I meant there's no way you're telling the truth about Gohan being dead!"

Before the raging beauty could shoot back a reply however, a new voice entered the argument. It was heavy with pain, and came out as a choking gurgle, but Goku's voice was still heard in the momentary silence. "It is. S-She's telling the truth; Gohan is dead."

If Goku managing to talk wasn't amazing enough though, both Bulma and the Ox King were floored when they watched him stagger to his feet. He favored his injured right knee, but the monkey-tailed boy _was_ standing.

"It happened a few weeks ago; during the last full moon. Gohan liked to go on walks, especially at night when it was cool, only this time...he didn't come back. When I went out to look for him the next morning, I found that he'd been bitten by a Mamushi. The bite had melted away the skin around his ankle before spreading."

All in earshot listened, and many felt their hearts go out to the young boy. Bulma though had to hide the look in her eyes as she listened to her new friend's story.

He'd told her Gohan was mauled to death. Now he was saying it had been from a snake bite?

It was quickly becoming clear to the blue-haired beauty that there was something about Gohan's death that Goku knew, but wasn't telling anyone.

However, while she was pondering the mystery that was Goku, a few yards away behind a tree Yamcha could only feel the cold sweat that slid down his neck. When he'd arrived right behind the trio the bandit had been giddy with mean-spirited excitement once he'd heard Kakarot challenge the Ox King. And only felt it increase at seeing the devastating blow the burly monarch landed on the kid's knee.

...Only to gape in fright moments later at seeing him stand on that same leg as if he'd only stumbled.

 _'W-What the hell IS this kid!? I'd never be able to throw another kick again, much less stand after a blow like that!'_

Yamcha still felt the way his tongue throbbed from how he'd bitten down on it during his fight with the younger boy, and the heat in his mouth was only marginally cooled by the sweat that broke out upon hearing loud and clear that Kakarot had indeed been trained by the legendary Gohan.

Before Yamcha's thoughts could fall any further into despair though, they were interrupted by the continuation of Goku's conversation with the Ox King.

"I-I'm sorry to hear that," the large monarch lamented. "Gohan and I were students together under our Master, Roshi, and had been close friends before I took the throne from my father. With everything here that needed my attention though, he and I lost contact. I-It pains me to know he has passed on...but I believe some of that would be relieved if I could aid his young ward in his quest."

"Does that mean you'll give us the dragon ball in your castle?" Bulma butted in hopefully.

The Ox King nodded resolutely, but their was still a hard expression on his face. One that Goku quickly picked up on.

"You look like there's a 'but' coming at the end of that agreement. What's the problem?"

By now Oolong had plucked up the courage to make his way over, and as he stepped up beside Bulma the shape-shifting pig voiced another part of the 'Legend of Fire Mountain'. "It's because he can't get passed the flames either; they're too hot, even for the Ox King."

Hearing this made Goku facepalm.

"Would someone _please_ explain why anyone would willingly set their own home on fire? Because from everything I've heard so far, it's one of the stupidest ideas a person could have."

"For my daughter."

The Ox King's answer was short and simple...but Goku still didn't understand.

"What," he asked with a scoff, "did she ask you to do it?"

Ox King's response was a negative shake of his head. "No, nothing like that. It's just that...I lost my wife when Chi-Chi was still a baby. Her death devastated me. Because of that, I've always been over-protective of Chi-Chi, which lead me to ask a wizard to surround the castle with a ring of fire. I-It was just supposed to help keep away anyone who would try and kidnap my daughter, b-but too late I found that the wizard I'd hired hadn't been practicing for very long. His magic was unstable, and that led to the fire spreading out of control."

"But if it was a wizard who put _up_ the flames, why don't you just hire one to take them down?" Bulma questioned with honest curiosity. It did seem like a simple solution after all.

"Oh, believe me, I tried. But wizards are not very common in this day; not since the reign of the Demon King when he wiped them out. Now, there are only a small handful left, but they have gone into a self-imposed exile for their failure so many years ago. With that, there is only one other thing I can think of that would put out these flames."

"And that would be..." Goku lead, hoping to begin the search for such an item soon.

"The Bansho Fan."

"Bansho Fan? I've never heard of that." Bulma thought out loud. She had researched various magical artifacts since her discovery of the dragon balls, but she had never heard of the Bansho Fan.

"It's a large, powerful instrument made from a palm-leaf," Ox King explained. "It has the power to not only control the weather, but also extinguish any sort of flame no matter how strong."

Hearing this had Goku giving the larger warrior a confused look. "If you know this fan will solve your problem, why haven't you gotten your hands on it?"

At this those watching the Ox King saw the man duck his head in embarrassment, before muttering out his answer like a scolded child. "Because it is held by my former martial arts master...and I've forgotten where he lives."

Both Goku and Bulma's eyes widened with their disbelief at such a statement.

How could he have simply forgotten where he'd trained for, what they both assumed to be, _years_!

But then part of what the shamed monarch said struck. His former sensei had possession of the Bansho Fan. Master Roshi had been that teacher. And they had just seen Roshi a number of _days_ ago.

Goku and his female friend seemed to be of one mind, because each one found their eyes turning to the other. Blue met onyx, and the two shared a victorious smirk.

From there they went on to explain the luck Ox King seemed to have stumbled upon, and with a promise from Bulma to help the man find his missing daughter, Goku called forth his flying nimbus before racing off to collect the elderly martial artist.

What neither of them knew though was that, aside from Yamcha, there was one other person watching them.

 _ **xXx**_

Hard, calculating onyx eyes stared at the multitude of screens in front of them. The super-computer that aired the images of the watcher's spy fly's showed places as far as the continent spanned. All of Asia was under the watcher's devious gaze.

And at this moment in particular, that gaze was locked on the image of a young boy riding a yellow cloud.

 _'I've waited this long,'_ they thought. _'And at this rate, it won't be much longer before those fools have the rest of the dragon balls in one place. Then that'll only leave...'_

The villain's eyes strayed from the screen, and landed on the object of his thoughts. On a pillowed display case, a few feet away, sat the one-star dragon ball. With a malicious grin finding its way onto the silent watcher's face, they reached out a singer, blue finger and pressed a red intercom button.

Static crackled for a second, letting whoever was on the other end know that the line was open, before the villain spoke. The excitement could hardly be kept from their voice as they instructed: "Shu, Mai be ready to entertain some guests. My victory is close at hand, and I want everything to be ready."

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Okay! This has been a long time coming, but chapter three is now up. I got a new job, and moved, so it's been rough finding time to update any of my stories. I chose to do this one first though because it, honestly, just felt the easiest. With it still being in the beginning I don't have too much complicated story-telling to work through.**_

 _ **Hopefully you all still enjoy it though.**_

 _ **Anyway, I've hinted at a couple of things in this chapter, and also gave another insight into Goku's ability. He can take a hit. I got this from my thought of, the only one to really break any of Goku's bones had been Piccolo when they battled at the World Tournament. And then Raditz later on. My point being, it took super-human levels of strength to damage Goku's bones; a level that I don't believe the Ox King possesses.**_

 _ **Speaking of the Ox King; I didn't make him faster than Goku, he just rebounded fast from the attacks because he's so durable.**_

 _ **Um...oh! Okay, so the whole thing about Yamcha. I'm not trying to bash him, I just feel like if someone were living out in the desert alone they wouldn't cut the most attractive figure. And while I don't doubt you can find water sources in the desert, I personally don't think Yamcha had the intelligence to work that out.**_

 _ **Also, I kind of took a shot at how the original Dragon Ball characters were drawn when I described Yamcha. I always thought they looked...lumpy. The fighters didn't start to look particularly 'cut' until I think the middle-end of the Frieza Saga.**_

 _ **Anyway, I'm not too sure what else I should talk about here, so I leave it up to you guys to PM me or leave reviews with anything you think I missed. Or anything you just feel like asking me. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and look forward to the next one.**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch.4: Martial arts prodigies and devious minds! Enter the Kamehameha Wave and Emperor Pilaf!**_

 _ **xXx**_

Crystal-blue eyes surveyed the mountainous landscape as Bulma sat beside the Ox-King in his personal hover car. She, along with a reluctant Oolong, had agreed to aid the large monarch in the search for his only daughter Chi-Chi. However as they sped along, the young genius found her mind drifting.

The topic: Goku.

Bulma couldn't help but marvel at how much her life had already changed in just the couple of weeks since she'd met the monkey-tailed alien. A year ago, the blue-haired beauty would have never imagined herself in the company of a man such as the Ox King, or learning that aliens really did exist. It was mind boggling.

Yet, with the exciting came the strange. Learning that Goku's real name was Kakarot, and that his mission was to destroy all life on Earth was a terrifying shock for Bulma at the time; but then the wild boy showed himself to be uninterested in such a task. If anything, Goku seemed more interested in _learning_ about the human race rather than exterminating it. He'd even asked Bulma how her vehicles worked and what they ran on. And while children were known for being curious, Goku's inquiries were always well thought out and direct; his vocabulary, Bulma learned, had been enhanced by the various books Gohan had kept in his personal trunk.

In short, Bulma could only conclude that Goku was either a prodigy or his race was highly intelligent.

 _'But then, why haven't they come for him yet?'_ The blue-haired beauty thought from her seat beside the giant monarch. _'Surely the fact that he hasn't sent any sort of report back should have his parents worried.'_

It was questions like this that stumped Bulma's brilliant mind. And yet, with what Goku was sent to do on Earth, the teenage genius often hoped the young boy's people _didn't_ come looking for him. After all, what if they decided to finish what their son never started?

That thought alone plagued many of Bulma's dreams; like a boogie man at the back of her brain. Often, the young girl's azure eyes would open wide in fright as she awoke from another nightmare. On those nights Bulma was forced to watch, as imagined images of older Goku's raining down on the planet inside pods like the one she and the monkey-tailed boy had found weeks ago, began laying waste to every city on the planet.

The means was always different; sometimes with advanced weaponry,other times with crazy powers like breathing fire. But every time it would end the same...the _real_ Goku, seated on a throne, with her battered body thrown at his feet. And as awful as the destruction of her home was, the worst part of her nightmare was always the look Goku would give her as she begged him for help.

It was like something pulled from a painting of the devil; nothing at all like the stoic indifference, or cocky challenger Bulma was used to. No, this Goku's face was twisted into a cruel, unforgiving smile. His unnaturally sharper canines gave the seated fighter a feral, animalistic look that was only heightened by the blood smeared around his lips from whatever raw meat he'd just taken a bite of. Onyx-black orbs were slit in pure relish as he looked down his nose at her in contempt. Then, with a single raise of his hand, Bulma knew nothing but pain the likes of which she'd never known before awakening from the nightmare.

Even with the cool breeze afforded by the Ox-King's convertible hover car Bulma still found herself shivering at just the memory of those dreams.

But then, that's all they were right? Goku wouldn't really hurt her...would he?

 _'No,'_ Bulma denied with a shake of her head. _'Goku called me his friend, there's no way he would turn on me like that, I just know it.'_

So engrossed was she in her thoughts Bulma didn't notice that the car had stopped until a large, meaty hand patted her on the shoulder. Shocked from her internal retrospection, the blue-haired girl turned her eyes up in a silent question of what the man beside her wanted.

"You seem troubled; I was asking if you thought your friend would have any interest in marrying my daughter, but when you didn't say anything I began to get worried. Is something the matter?"

Bulma blinked in an effort to clear away the images in her mind before shaking her head. "No, nothing's wrong, I was just spacing out. Also, to answer your question, I'm not too sure Goku would have any interest in your offer. He doesn't even know Chi-Chi; besides Goku's not the type to do something without a real reason. As I just mentioned, they don't know each other, which means Goku has even less of a reason to think about your offer because he sees no point in it; why marry someone if there's nothing to gain or emotional bond to share."

The Ox-King seemed to ponder this for a moment before speaking again, although the question he asked wasn't the one Bulma was expecting. "Your friend calls himself Kakarot, yet you have continuously referred to him as 'Goku', why is that?"

The question drew Bulma's mind back to the conversation the Ox-King had had with Goku right before the young boy rocketed off to find Roshi. Ox-King had, like any normal person, asked Goku for his name.

It came as no surprise to the beautiful genius when her alien friend had given the monarch his original name, rather than the one given to him by Gohan. However, it was times like this when Bulma wished Goku were just a bit more friendly to others; as it would save her the need to explain why he went by two separate names.

With a sheepish grin, the blue-haired teen attempted to give an explanation for her friend's behavior.

"Well, Kakarot is Goku's real name; 'Goku' being the name given to him by Gohan when he was adopted. Unfortunately Goku doesn't really trust anyone new, so he gives them his birth name as a sign of that mistrust. As for why _I_ call him 'Goku' rather than 'Kakarot' is rather simple, although no less meaningful to me...he considers me a friend and he trusts me."

The Ox-King mulled over his passenger's words while he continued driving, his mind working over Bulma's words as they searched for his daughter.

What made this 'Goku' so withdrawn; especially if he had lived with Gohan for any length of time? What sort of past could possibly cause a boy so young to be so closed off to all but one person? And finally, what had Bulma done to coax the boy into a friendship with her?

Normally the Ox-King would not trouble himself with such thoughts, but the enigma that was Kakarot seemed to call to him just as much as the little orange ball he'd acquired, and now lay tucked away in the confines of his burning castle.

However, before the burly man could ponder the mysterious boy any further, a shrill scream of fright rang in his ears. One that the Ox-King recognized immediately.

"WAAAHAAAA! SOMEONE HELP MEEEE!"

It was Chi-Chi; and she was in trouble!

Straining his ears to catch which way the sound had come from, the mighty monarch swerved the hover car into a sharp turn and began speeding towards where he picked up his daughter's cry for help. With his massive boot pressed firm against the gas, and his eyes narrowed in intense focus, the Ox-King found himself swing around a number of tall rock formations, as well as a plenty of wildlife, before finally caching sight of Chi-Chi.

And what he saw did _not_ make him very happy!

Bulma herself was left to gasp in horror at the potential disaster as she too laid eyes on the younger girl's hideous predicament.

Dressed in a blue cheongsam with red pants, and black shoes. Her dark, raven hair was free of any sort of tie and whipped behind her as the young girl ran screaming from the gnashing jaws of a large, purple dinosaur. With her dark eyes swallowed by tears the frightened princess didn't see the indent in the earth ahead of her, so when the toe of her pointed flat caught in the dip Chi-Chi went tumbling forward.

From her seat in the hover car Bulma could only look on in horror, her body frozen in fear and anguish. But when the transport rocked heavily, before settling back down, the heiress of Capsule Corp felt her fear turn to shock. The Ox-King was tearing down the country-side, his body hunched as if he were about to actually _ram_ the tyrannosaurus threatening his daughter! The large king's roar of battle, his ferocious moment, were all brought to a screeching halt however when a blindly fearful Chi-Chi turned to face the purple dinosaur...and blasted it with a vibrant beam.

In almost an instant the scaly predator was toppled, and transformed into a roasted carcass.

For Bulma it was almost too good to be true; until her brilliant mind rebooted and she replayed that scene over in her head. It had only been for a moment, but that was all the blue-haired beauty needed, because Bulma easily recreated the memory in her mind. After turning over and onto her back Chi-Chi had thrust out her hands as she waled for her fiendish pursuer to leave her alone. Then, just for a second, there was a gleam that came off a pair of rings the Ox-King's daughter was wearing on each pointer finger. From there it was the creation of the beam, and the cooked dino hide Bulma could now smell in the air.

It was Chi-Chi's blubbering as she launched herself at the Ox-King that broke Bulma out of her stupor. After a rapid set of blinks, the blue-haired beauty removed her seat-belt and climbed out of the hover car, her ears choosing to selectively ignore Oolong's shouts of indignation at being left alone.

Coming up on the father-daughter duo, Bulma made out the words of comfort the Ox-King was belaying in a gentle tone. Seeing the mountain of a man behave like such a marshmallow, when just an hour before he'd been cruel and derogatory towards not only herself but Goku as well, threw Bulma for a loop. And yet, here it was.

"Oh Chi-Chi, what in the world were you doing out here all by yourself? Don't you remember how dangerous I said the lands outside the village are for a girl so young; what if something happened to you, don't you know how heartbroken I would be?"

The little girl sniffled a little before responding, her button nose glowing red from all the crying she'd been doing that day. "I-I was only trying to find M-Master Roshi, Papa; the one you said could put out the fire. I-I just wanted to be able to go home~."

Chi-Chi broke out into another crying fit after finishing her reply with a pitiful whine. From her place outside the family hug Bulma felt her heart throb at the sight of one so young suffering so much pain. Which is why it came as a great joy when a familiar voice called out from above.

"Bulma, I found the old man!"

Crystal-blue eyes shot up to the sky above, and Bulma beamed in a show of great happiness as her friend came soaring down from the heavens on his little yellow cloud. Even seeing the perverted martial arts master trailing behind on his own flying familiar didn't drain any the joy Bulma felt at seeing Goku again; even if it had only been a little over an hour.

At the same time however, Chi-Chi also looked up at hearing the new voice, and her reaction was a bit... _different_ from Bulma's.

The moment her onyx eyes landed on the wild-haired boy with the monkey tail, young Chi-Chi felt her face turn a pretty pink. Descending from the very sky, commanding the legendary nimbus cloud itself, the fierce-looking warrior in white looked every bit the knight in shining armor Chi-Chi had read about. It was as the boy finished his dive from above, and jumped from his cloud, that the smitten princess of Fire Mountain learned his name.

"That's great Goku; and you got back just in time too. The Ox-King and I just managed to find his daughter, Chi-Chi. She was being chased by a pretty nasty, over-grown lizard, but that's not even the wildest part. Chi-Chi used these rings to create some sort of energy beam that completely fried the thing!"

Bulma gushed about the possibility of recreating such devices, but Chi-Chi herself heard none of it. She was too busy staring dreamily at the boy in front of her. _'Goku~,'_ She swooned.

However, the young girl's flip-flopping tummy dropped to her feet, and she reeled back in disgust as the vision of her white knight was replaced by a hideous old man. Unlike Goku he was bald, and his face was home to an untidy beard and mustache the color of snow. Where Goku wore a martial arts gi that fit his svelte, athletic body the old man wore a disgusting, orange beach shirt and white shorts that stopped above his knees. He also wore a turtle shell on his back, and carried a walking stick in his right hand.

 _This_ was Master Roshi!?

Before the young princess could make any sort of comment however, she was further awestruck by what her father did next. Her father, the feared and ferocious Ox-King, the man said to have the strength of one hundred men and whose power was great enough to fell just as many with just one sweep of his ax...was _kneeling!_

"Oh, Master Roshi, how great it is to see you again!" Ox-King greeted enthusiastically, his burly arms easily trapping the elderly martial artist in a beefy hug. "It's been far too long Master; I'm overjoyed to see you still in good health."

To everyone but Goku's surprise, Roshi easily freed himself from the Ox-King's powerful grip and landed softly on his feet. What did surprise Goku however, was the tone with which the old man addressed his former student. "I wish I could say the same Ox, but I've heard far too many stories about you to be happy about our reunion. What's this I hear about you terrorizing the countryside; I didn't teach you martial arts so you could become a tyrant!"

Ox-King immediately dropped to the dirt floor, his nose to the ground and hands outstretched in a prostrating pose of submission. "Oh Master, forgive me, but you don't understand! I rage not out of enjoyment, but anguish. My home, the very castle I hoped to raise my daughter, has blazed for many years and I've since become desperate to find a way to put out the fire. My methods may be violent, but I've just begun to lose hope. Please Master, forgive this worthless student, and say you'll save my home?"

There was a tense few seconds after the large monarch's blubbering plea, one that had even the hidden Yamcha feel the hair on the back of his neck stand at attention. Should Master Roshi refuse, there was no telling what the mighty Ox-King's next move was going to be.

Yet such worries were unfounded, because after letting loose a tired breath, the elderly martial arts master agreed to lend his aid. "But only because I can see you are truly ashamed for what you've done. Now, show me this 'eternal flame' you've so foolishly surrounded your castle with, and I'll put it out. I don't have the Bansho Fan anymore, but there's still a trick I know that may do the job."

Leaping back to his feet in utter relief, the Ox-King hurriedly ushered his old teacher in the direction of his home, and introduced the man to his daughter as they walked. Goku and Bulma were quick to follow, as was Oolong once he saw that there was no longer any danger. For Goku, the young alien found his interest peaked; just how was Roshi going to extinguish a flame that has burned for ten years?

The answer turned out to be the first step, in a long journey for power, for the young boy.

Standing to the side and out of the way, Goku watched Roshi as he settled himself atop a broken patch of wall that had him looking right at the castle. Onyx-black eyes watched with focused intent as the martial arts master removed his gaudy beach shirt, revealing a thin and frail-looking body, but then widened in pure disbelief as that same figure seemed to explode into a small mountain of bulging muscle.

 _'H-How did he do that!?'_ Goku stammered mentally. Never had he witnessed such a thing; and yet it helped to explain how Roshi was able to best him so easily. The man truly was more powerful than he appeared.

And then, it happened. Goku watched, his mouth still dropped open in shock, as Roshi lifted his hands and began to motion with his thick and muscular arms. Cupping the heels of his flexed hands together, Roshi pulled his arms back so his hands rested near his waist, and then he began to chant.

"Ka...me...

It was as if time was moving slow for the wild-haired Goku. Where once there was empty air, the space between Roshi's palms began to fill with a bright, almost fluorescent blue ball of light.

"Ha...me..."

That vibrant sphere began to grow in size; what was once no bigger than a marble had slowly expanded to the size of a baseball. Then Roshi tensed his powerful body, lurched his hands back, and then trust them forward with one final cry.

"HA!"

The ball of light, Goku realized, was actually energy! That medium-sized sphere immediately grew to the size of a dinosaur egg, and a thick beam shot out from its center; it rounded spear-head rocketing straight for Fire Mountain. As is raced, Goku watched as the beam increased in size, and turned his eyes to look at Roshi. The elderly man's bulging body was lined with thick, pulsing veins that easily showed just how much effort he was putting into the technique. And it further showed when Goku looked back at the castle, and saw the entire structure be enveloped by the Kamehameha blast. Then, just as quickly as it was covered, the castle was revealed again; this time free of any flames.

It's sturdy walls were singed, and there was numerous cracks throughout the facade from being hit by the beam, but the Ox-King's castle was standing tall and free of its fiery prison.

With his job done, Master Roshi let out a long breath and allowed his body to relax. His muscles deflated, and Goku watched in fascination as he returned to looking like a scrawny old man. Feeling himself being watched, Roshi turned his shaded eyes to the monkey-tailed youth and offered a slight jab.

"The Kamehameha Wave; a technique of my own creation. Are you still so sure you don't want to learn from me, Kakarot?"

"How about you just tell me how it's done, and I'll figure the rest out myself old man." Was Goku's quick response.

Interestingly enough, it was Ox-King who answered. "You show the Master some respect boy; it took him fifty years to even develop the Kamehameha Wave, and even after being his student I'm still unable to perform it!"

"Only because you still haven't realized that the technique is created through concentrating your _Ki_ , rather than simply flexing your muscles and bellowing like a gorilla." Roshi reminded his former student.

 _'Ki.'_ Goku thought as he stared down at his own hands, flexing his fingers in wonder. Gohan had been just about to teach Goku about this very subject before that fateful, full moon night so the name was nothing new, however seeing its use in real life was unlike anything Goku had expected. At least, until he remembered his dream. Those weapons of light, they were beams just like the Kamehameha Wave, meaning that his father had the ability to use _Ki_!

 _'And if he could do it...'_ Goku theorized, as he narrowed his eyes in focus. He easily recalled the way Roshi had seemed so centered, so in-tune with his body. So Goku made the same attempt. He envisioned himself, forming the technique in his hands, and that ball of energy resting between his palms. He imagined the heat that would come off the neon sphere, conjured the humming that he'd heard when he watched Roshi and let it fill his own ears. Dimly aware that he was staring to work through the same motions as he'd seen Roshi do, Goku settled into the stance with his hands cupped at his sides. It wasn't until he heard Bulma gasp in wonder that he realized those sensation he'd imagined were in fact _real_.

"G-Goku, how did you _do that_?"

Opening his dark eyes, the monkey-tailed martial artist looked down and saw that he'd done it; he'd recreated the Kamehameha Wave! However, even in his state of triumphant shock Goku was able to see that there was a very distinct difference between his energy and Roshi's.

Where the old man's had been a bright, neon-blue, Goku's was a strong almost-black shade of violet.

Wondering if this would affect the technique any, Goku shifted into a firm stance before thrusting his hands forward. "Kamehameha!" He was glad to see that his beam still performed in the same way Roshi's had, even if it wasn't anywhere near as large, but was interested to see that it had punched a sizable hole in the first barrier it came across; that being a clearly abandon home. Then, as the already decrepit building finally gave out and began to crumble, Goku turned his attention back to the old man in sunglasses.

"Fifty years, huh?" He snarked, a smug look stretching over his young face. Then, that look washed away as he turned to Bulma. "Now that the fire is out, could you go ahead and start looking for the ball?"

At the mention of the next dragon ball the blue-haired beauty finally managed to shake off her shock, and heartily agreeing with her younger companion turned towards the Ox-King to ask if he'd show her into the castle.

"Very well, but only because Kakarot managed to bring the Master here to extinguish the flame." The burly monarch conceded. With that, he lead a widely-grinning Bulma and a still stunned Oolong into his home.

His daughter on the other hand, moved closer to a Goku who looked about ready to start another conversation with Master Roshi.

"So is the Kamehameha your only technique, old man?" Goku wondered out loud. "If it is, what point would there be in me becoming your student if I've learned your greatest move in under ten minutes?"

While an irritated Roshi went on to explain about his teachings, and how they would help increase not only Goku's power, but speed and reflexes as well, behind his tree Yamcha looked on at the monkey-tailed boy in true fear. Considering himself to be a martial artist, the bandit had indeed heard of the legendary Kamehameha Wave and its immense power. It was said to be the greatest technique in the world! And yet, here was some little kid capable of doing, what took a Master like Roshi _fifty years_ to develop, in seconds! This, coupled with the harsh beating Yamcha had suffered at Goku's hands, had the older boy wary of just how much more dangerous he'd become if Roshi actually took him on as a student.

"My only hope it to get my hands on the dragon balls first, and make my wish." Yamcha seethed to his partner, Puar. "If I do, I can wish to be made the greatest martial artist in the whole world, and then not only will I be able to defeat Kakarot but Bulma will be _sure_ to notice me then."

"But Master, what about your...condition?" The shape-shifting cat worried. "If you try to fight Kakarot before curing it, he could use it to his advantage and you'd be right back to square one."

"Not if I get him alone." The bandit reasoned. "If I fight him away from Bulma, or any other girl for that matter, there's no way he'll defeat me then."

The two continued to plot, their tones not whispered, but low. However, what neither of them realized was that Goku could still hear them. He'd learned long ago that his senses were significantly sharper than any human's, so hearing Yamcha and Puar, even from so many feet away, was of little difficulty.

Unfortunately, his idea to call them out was sabotaged by the interference of some girl he'd never met before. She had garnered his attention through a stuttered 'E-Excuse me', and was barely able to look him in the eye when he turned to her. She was a small thing, even though they stood at the same height. Her body was soft and petite, Goku could see no traces of muscle tone, and her hands looked free of any sort of callouses or rough patches of skin. The girl, being younger than Bulma, obviously looked very different, and yet this wasn't what caused the boy to look at her with disinterest. In fact, Goku mentally decided Chi-Chi was indeed what many would consider 'cute'.

The problem was that Chi-Chi, if he remembered the Ox-King calling her, gave off a very distinct aura of shyness and discomfort. It was so thick that Goku could practically smell it. She also had a problem standing still; Chi-Chi continuously shuffled her feet, or played with her fingers. And finally, she could hardly look at Goku for more than a few seconds before turning her gaze to the floor. This meek, submissive behavior left a bad taste in Goku's mouth; one he couldn't for the life of him explain.

But he decided that was no reason to be rude, and tuned back in when he heard the girl begin to speak.

"M-My name is Chi-Chi, I'm the Ox-King's daughter, I thought I heard that other girl call you 'Goku' but I'm not certain. W-Would you mind telling me your name?"

"I'm Kakarot, and it's...nice to meet you Chi-Chi." Goku couldn't find a better word than 'nice' to describe what he felt about their meeting, one that spoke truer of how he felt without being rude, and only hoped the young girl didn't notice his hesitation.

She didn't. Chi-Chi was too caught up in her swooning, and having the handsome boy's attention on her, to take note of his growing discomfort. Instead she offered a shy smile and continued talking. "T-That's a nice name. I saw you do the Kamehameha Wave Kakarot; you're _amazing_."

Seeing the strange way she was looking at him reminded Goku of how Yamcha had stared at Bulma earlier that same day. He would need to ask her if she'd been as uncomfortable then, as he found himself feeling in this moment. Chi-Chi's eyes sparkled with something foreign, and her pupils were dilated. She was leaning in just so, with her clasped hands settled neatly over her chest.

Goku himself leaned back, attempting to save his personal space as he replied. "Thank you Chi-Chi, that's very...kind of you to say. I'm surprised though; you know about the Kamehameha Wave?"

Chi-Chi nodded enthusiastically before answering. "Oh yeah, my Papa tells me stories about his years training under Master Roshi all the time, plus I've even watched him when he practices. I've never seen anybody beat him."

The monkey-tailed boy did his best to keep the scoff from leaving his lips, but only managed to cover it with an act of clearing his throat. Because while the Ox-King had indeed caught him off-guard, Goku had no doubt in his mind that he could defeat the man, especially now that he had the Kamehameha Wave in his arsenal of techniques. _'I'd just have to be careful not to over-use it; I'm still a little winded from that one I used earlier.'_

Remembering that he hadn't responded to the blushing girl's last statement, Goku offered another question. "You say you've watched him practice, do you study martial arts yourself?"

When Chi-Chi shook her head in the negative, the little spark of curiosity inside Goku finally died and his normal indifference took its place. At least until she flashed him her hands."No, but Papa did give me these rings. They help draw out my energy, since I don't know how, and project it in a beam so I can protect myself against things or people that try to hurt me."

Goku would have asked how they worked, if Bulma hadn't come running up to him with a victorious squeal passing through her beaming smile. "Look Goku, this makes six, we only need to find one more dragon ball before we can summon the dragon!"

And while the ecstatic teen didn't see the annoyed look Chi-Chi was giving her, the ever observant Goku did, and it made him raise an eyebrow in interest. What was _her_ problem?

Choosing to ask Bulma about it later, Goku instead went to ask her where the final dragon ball was located. "I'd like to see the dragon before I'm as old as the pervert over there." He reasoned, thumbing over to the incoming Roshi.

"Keep it up and I'll rescind my offer to let you train under me kid." Roshi threatened. Then he turned his attention to the blue-haired beauty in front of him and leered grossly at her as he greeted Bulma. "It's been a while since I've seen ya Bulma, how about coming over here and giving an old man a hug?"

The elderly man's lecherous intentions were clear with the way he groped the empty air, and Bulma shivered in disgust before stepping back behind her scowling friend. " _Ew~_ , no thanks, I think I'll just stay over here with Goku."

It was here that Chi-Chi made herself known again. "I-I thought you said your name was Kakarot, why is she calling you 'Goku'?"

"It's just a nickname," Bulma cut in after seeing the odd look the princess was giving her young friend. Being a female herself, the blue-haired city girl easily understood what was going on. "I just call him Goku because...because..."

"Because she knows it annoys me; she makes fun of the fact I'm named after a vegetable." Goku finished for her, the pint-sized fighter choosing to use the reason for her calling him 'monkey boy' to appease the curious Chi-Chi. He had no idea what her issue was, and personally didn't care, all Goku wanted was to move on and find the final dragon ball.

But it seemed Chi-Chi wasn't going to make it easy for him. The pre-pubescent princess lost her look of confusion and jealousy, and replaced it with shy hopefulness as she turned her attention fully on Goku. Off to the side her father watched the exchange with interest of his own, his mind still thinking of a way to wed his daughter to the obviously powerful young boy.

"O-Oh, well then do you m-mind if I give you one? I promise it won't be anything mean." She asked, the toe of her shoe digging a small hole into the dirt as the girl peered up at Goku through her lashes.

It was with a wary eyebrow that the wild-haired alien offered his consent.

"How about 'Kishi'; because you're the reason Master Roshi even knew about the fire, and without you he never would have come to put it out." Chi-Chi rocked on her heels as she gave the boy in the white gi another pretty smile.

Goku could only cock his head to the side, his face betraying nothing, as he answered. "I...suppose that's alright. Sure, you can call me 'Kishi', Chi-Chi."

The young princess was thrilled; in her mind it was as if Goku had just agreed to be her own personal knight. Continuing to swoon over the young fighter she asked if he would stay and have dinner with her and her father, to celebrate having their castle back. She was distraught when he refused.

Only to brighten when, of all people, Bulma was the one to convince him to stay. "You were just talking about how hungry you were earlier, and I know you haven't eaten anything all day, so I think we should stay. Besides, with my radar there's nowhere on earth for the last dragon ball to hide, so there's no rush Goku." Turning to Chi-Chi, Bulma leaned down on her knees and offered a cheerful smile. "We'd be more than happy to stay for dinner cutie, thank you."

Realizing she would have to invite the older, beautiful girl as well Chi-Chi almost wanted to rescind the offer. But one look at Goku, and then hearing the way his stomach growled at the thought of finally getting something to eat, had the princess heartily motioning for them to follow her inside.

Wrapping her arms around Goku's muscular bicep she batted her eyes at the boy and asked what his favorite food was. Her love-tinted gaze didn't see the sour look that broke out on her 'Kishi's' face as he answered.

"Anything made of meat will do fine, thank you." The alien boy had to swallow a growl as he spoke, and tensed his shoulder to keep from jerking free of the odd girl's annoying grip. As much as Goku hated having his personal space violated, Bulma had been right and he _was_ hungry, and the young boy believed that if he rebuffed the princess' efforts to be close that the offer would expire. So Goku kept his peace and ignored the terrible itch he had to get away from the clingy girl known as Chi-Chi.

What none of them knew however was that they were being watched. A small bird fluttered its wings from above, while its beady eyes followed the small group as they entered the castle. Eyes that, miles away, were feeding that same view to a monitor inside an even grander castle to a man known as Pilaf.

 _ **xXx**_

Dinner had been pleasant, but only after the Ox-King had gone out and bought food that _hadn't_ been sitting inside a burning castle for ten years. Goku showed off his impressive appetite by devouring an entire roasted boar single-handedly before slurping up ten bowls of noodles, and finishing it off with a large platter of egg rolls.

"Geeze kid, you'd think you hadn't eaten a day in your life." Oolong gaped. "Where in the world did you put all that?"

Goku only gave the talking pig a look, as if to ask 'are you dumb', before replying. "In my stomach; where else would it go?"

"Now that I think about it, the day we met you _were_ dragging a humongous fish behind you Goku." Bulma interjected, a thoughtful look etched across her face. "I guess I just didn't fully notice it on account of me hitting you with my car."

Chi-Chi choked on her drink at this bit of news. "You hit him with your _what_!? How could you do something like that?"

"It was an accident," Goku defended. "I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings, so when I came out of the woods I'd unknowingly stepped into the middle of a dirt road." It was a lie of course, having lived in the mountains for so long Goku knew them like the back of his hand, but the wild-haired martial artist didn't like the way Chi-Chi seemed to be almost glaring at Bulma.

The conversation moved then to a topic the monkey-tailed youth was more than happy to talk about; martial arts. It was brought up by Master Roshi, who spoke of an event that took place every three years: The Tenkaichi Budokai.

"It's a tournament that takes fighters from all over the globe, and pits them against one another in an effort to decide who is the strongest fighter in the world. There's no real age restriction, so you'd be able to enter alongside the adults, and test yourself against the toughest of martial artists."

Goku looked on in great interest at this bit of information, his brow knitted in focus as he listened carefully to the elderly man's words. "I'm assuming you're telling me this because the next tournament is fast approaching, right?"

"That's correct," Roshi nodded. "It's a little more than eight months from now, but I thought I'd tell you about it so you could prepare. Bulma said herself that there's no chance of you actually losing out on finding that last dragon ball, so I have no doubt your quest will be finished long before then, and once it is I'd hope you come by my island. I told you about what my training would do for you, and I think you and I both know that even a little bit of progress is better than none at all; right?"

Goku knew he was right, and the prospect of further increasing his strength aroused a feeling of excitement deep inside that only grew at the thought of facing all those fighters in the World Tournament. His choice was clear.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt; but none of your perverted nonsense old man. If I'm going to learn under you then I'd better feel like I'm actually getting something done, or I'm out, understood?"

Roshi only offered a nod as he agreed, although his face was a little pinched in irritation. "Fine, take all the fun out of it why don't ya?"

From there it was a quiet evening of story telling and small talk, although Goku still found Chi-Chi to be far too focused on him as she rarely left his side. But that came to an end when the Ox-King informed his dozing daughter that it was time for bed.

"But I'm not sleepy." She tried to say, although it was covered with a yawn which completely shut down her argument. It wasn't more than a second after her father picked up in his arms that the little girl was fast asleep, her lips lifting into a content smile as she muttered the name 'Kishi' while snuggling into the king's embrace.

"I don't understand that girl at all." Goku muttered mostly to himself.

Bulma looked at the boy with a playful grin as she opened her mouth to tease. "Oh come on Goku, who are you trying to kid, it's obvious she _likes you_."

"That much is obvious, but what was with all the hand holding and those weird looks she kept giving me? I like you just fine Bulma, but I don't feel the need to constantly be touching you or talking your ear off." When Goku gave his only friend an exasperated look he was surprised to find one of incredulity staring back at him.

Both Roshi and Oolong had followed right after Ox-King and his daughter, so it was just the two of them, and it became more apparent when Goku found himself a little pinned down by Bulma's look of disbelief.

"Um, you...like me?" There was a tone of...almost _worry_ in her voice, and it only confused Goku more.

"Yes," he answered. "How could I consider you a friend if I thought you were annoying, or didn't like you Bulma?"

At this the blue-haired beauty sagged in what looked to be a sense of relief, something again that Goku couldn't truly comprehend. Were girls always so weird; Gohan hadn't ever gotten the chance to really explain what he called the 'fairer sex'. When it didn't look like Bulma was going to say anything else, the pint-sized fighter sent out a verbal prod. "Um, Bulma, I'm still confused."

Hearing the boy's voice made the teenager jump a little in her charred seat, and she blinked her big cerulean eyes for a moment before refocusing on her friend. "O-Oh, sorry about that kid, I just got a little...distracted there for a second." Nervously scratching at her nose, the embarrassed high school student waved her other hand dismissively as she went on to speak again. "But anyway, don't worry too much about Chi-Chi right now Goku, we'll be heading out in the morning anyway so it won't be an issue after that. Besides, I don't think I'm the best person to explain that concept to you."

Then Bulma made a production out of standing and stretching, before nervously bidding her younger friend goodnight and heading to her guest room.

Goku watched her go with a bewildered look on his face, and only shook it off after she disappeared from the the room. Shaking his head at the odd behavior he slid off the burnt couch he'd shared with Chi-Chi and settled onto the blacked rug on the floor in a 'lotus' pose.

Maybe some meditation would help him make sense of the strangeness of the female mind?

It was the oddity of the night, the variety of smokey scents, and the thick castle walls that kept Goku from knowing that just outside the castle Yamcha was scaling the side and making his way inside.

The desert bandit scrambled his way through one of the open windows, careful to watch his hands so he didn't cur himself on the broken window glass. Once he was inside though it quickly became a game of 'find the cheese', and he was the mouse, because Yamcha had absolutely no idea where the dragon balls were being kept.

It was a lucky thing his best friend was a talking cat.

"I can smell Oolong's disgusting scent from across the world Master; we were seat-mates back in shape-shifting school. I'd know his sweaty stench anywhere." Puar gagged in explanation. "And I doubt that the group would sleep too fat apart from each other, so once we get down to his room it'll just be a matter of looking through each room until we find that girl Bulma."

The pair had decided that she was the most likely person to have he wish-granting orbs in her possession, but even now, just thinking about the girl's beauty had Yamcha's mouth going dry.

So it was with visions of sweeping the blue-haired goddess off her feet for pummeling that rat, Kakarot, into the ground that the thief followed his floating companion through the corridors of the castle and down the many steps it took to reach Oolong's room.

"Can you pick out Bulma's scent from here Puar?" Yamcha asked the little cat.

Puar lifted her nose into the air and sniffed a couple of times, angling her head as she searched for a trail. Seeming to finally work through the various other odors in the hall though, Puar motioned for her Master to follow her as she flew two doors down and stopped. "She's in this one Master, but I think you'd better be careful, I can smell that old man Roshi a little further down the hall too. There's no telling what he'll do if he catches us."

"What about Kakarot, where is he?" The boy in the white gi was who Yamcha was really worried about. His bandaged wrist still throbbed, even after he reset and braced it, from when the younger fighter broke it.

The fact that it took Puar longer to catch the younger boy's scent was more than good enough for Yamcha, and then she told him the kid was in a completely separate room in the castle. "And the Ox-King isn't anywhere nearby either, so now's definitely your best chance." The female cat whispered.

With the damage from the flames it was child's play for Yamcha to work his way inside, but he was careful not to let out more than the unavoidable creaks that came from turning the knob and pushing open such an old door. Once he had it left open just a crack, the ragged-looking teen quietly stepped through the room and searched for the dragon balls. It took only moments with the way Bulma had her things organized, and soon Yamcha had the bag of wishing orbs clutched greedily in his fingers. He was grinning like a fool, and was just about to make his exit, when a rustling of sheets caught his attention.

 _'Damn, did she hear me!?'_ Yamcha fret, his body turning stiff as a stone. When he didn't hear any screams for help however the fearful teen worked his head to look over his shoulder...and found a bra-clad Bulma twisted in her own personal sheets.

It was easy to see that the girl had pulled her own bead set out from her belongings, because the pale pastel colors stood out vibrantly against the charred backdrop of the room. However it wasn't the soft-looking sheets that held Yamcha's attention, it was the girl they were wrapped around. Bulma lay spread out on the burnt mattress that had been lent to her for the night, its frame having been turned to tinder by the fire and so lay flat against the floor, and it was obvious to see that the girl was a wriggly sleeper. Her body was almost on full display with the way her arms and legs stretched to fill the corners of the mattress, all of her velvety soft skin free to be feasted on by the eyes as she slept in nothing but her pale-pink underwear. All except for the bundle of cloth that wrapped almost possessively around Bulma's waist.

Yamcha couldn't help tracing over every new inch of skin he found, from Bulma's ankles to her shoulders, stopping only to study the girl's smooth belly and leer at the soft rise-and-fall of her round breasts. Even cradled by the cottony cups of a bra Bulma's globes were a mesmerizing sight for the teenage Yamcha. Their plentiful size and perfect shape had him feeling weak in the knees, while thoughts of cupping the malleable flesh in his bare hands sent blood rushing between his legs.

But it wasn't the uncomfortable tightening of his trousers that woke Yamcha from his lusting...it was Kakarot.

"So not only are you a weakling and a thief, but you're a disgusting waste of space too, how did I know?" The boy in the white gi scoffed. "Ya know, you and your partner should be more careful when you're plotting, I could hear every word you two were saying behind your little tree fort outside. Did you really think you'd be able to just sneak in without me knowing?"

This had been bit of a bluff; Goku _hadn't_ known they were inside. However his hearing wasn't the only one of his senses that surpassed those of any normal human, his nose had easily picked up the desert bandit's filthy scent once he'd gotten close enough to the room Goku had stayed behind to meditate in. But Yamcha didn't need to know that.

Goku's stern voice, and Yamcha's frightened squeal were both enough to rouse Bulma from her slumber though. The groggy girl muttered angrily as she pushed herself onto the palms of her hands, and rubbing at her glassy eyes with heel of one palm grumbled to whoever ruined her beauty sleep. "How am I supposed to keep myself looking perfect, if I'm being woken up in the middle...of the..."

All grouchy feelings flushed from Bulma's body as she finally took in who was in her room. Taking their place was a sick disgust and female fury. "You! What the _hell_ are you doing here; and where do you think you're going with our dragon balls!?"

Yamcha could only stutter and bluster in the presence of a nearly-naked, awake, and angry Bulma. His tongue flapped, but only wordless babbling came out, and soon even that stopped as his eyes were drawn back to the girl's boobs. They heaved with Bulma's fury, easily drawing any red-blooded male's attention as they strained against the girl's bra.

This reminded Bulma that she was, indeed, clad in only her underwear and that lead her to scream in indignity. "GOKU! POUND THIS CREEP INTO DUST _RIGHT_ _NOW_!"

"With pleasure." The feral, almost hungry look that Yamcha found on Kakarot's face drained all the color from his own and swiftly killed the rising tent in his pants. However, he was saved when a massive tremor shook the ground and dropped the bandit to the floor.

Bulma yelped in fright, scrambling to find clothes to put on as another shock wave rumbled the ground beneath her bare feet. "W-What in the world is going on!?"

By now the rest of the castle was awake, and everyone was rushing to regroup. Once Bulma was fully clothed again she and Goku joined the rest of the sleepy bunch, uncaring that Yamcha scuttled behind after them, although Bulma made sure to snatch her dragon balls back. "I don't care if the ground splits in half, these are _mine_."

After gathering in the foyer it was Oolong's big mouth that broke the ice. "Okay, what's going on, is the world ending!? Because if it is, then I'm gonna scream, I haven't even had my first kiss!"

Having no experience with physical signs of affection besides a hug, Goku had no idea what the fumbling pig was talking about, but there was one thing he was certain about. "No, the world isn't ending you buffoon, we're being attacked."

As if to reiterate the boy's point a loud 'smash' echoed through the castle, and the sound of rushing footsteps soon filled everyone's ears. In no time they were surrounded by dozens of men, each with a deadly rifle aimed directly at them as they were cut off from any way of escape. The men were geared in riot armor, complete with helmets, and some even carrying large rectangular body shields.

"Who are you, and what are you doing in my home!" Ox-King demanded, his large body covering his cowering daughter as she clung to his knee. "Speak, before I decide to just forget about questioning and start crushing skulls!"

"I'd suggest not making empty threats, Ox-King." It was a female voice that called out from the crowed, which began to part and make room for the speaker. "Because I'm sure you and I both know that there's chance of you being able to fight _us_ , and protect you precious _daughter_ at the same time."

The woman who had spoken was young, only few years older than Bulma, and easily just as beautiful. She stood a few inches taller than the blue-haired girl, and dressed much less flatteringly than her too. Where Bulma was clothed in a pair of Boyshorts, a t-shirt, and sneakers the new girl was dressed in a clear uniform that allied her with the rest of the intruders. She wore a navy-blue trench coat and beige slacks, as well as sturdy brown combat boots. Her long, raven hair was left free of any sort of binding and fell to just past her shoulders, gently framing a pretty face decorated with red eye-shadow and ruby lipstick. Yes, the woman would indeed be considered beautiful...if it weren't for the pistol strapped to her hip that her right hand was rested on, and the smug grin she was shooting at the Ox-King.

"And don't think just because there's three of you that we won't win." The woman spoke again, referring to Goku and Roshi. "Because as good as you all are, there's no way you'll be able to beat us all before someone gets there hands on miss prom queen and the pewee princess there, so I want all of you to put your hands in the air and start moving before things have to get ugly."

The three martial artists hated to admit it, but trapped in such an enclosed space the intruder was right. They were surrounded, with little room to move, and there were far too many guns pointed that a stray bullet was sure to make it to one of the girls. So it was with grudging duress that each fighter did as they were told. Almost immediately they were smashed in the back of the head, felling both Roshi and the Ox-King, however Goku only gnashed his teeth in fury.

"If you're gonna take us with you just get i t over with already lady, because the next time one of your goons tries that on me I'm gonna break his fingers."

"General Mai, what do you want us to do?" One of the soldiers questioned the woman now known as Mai. "Should we just cuff him like the others?" To demonstrate he motioned to where Bulma, Yamcha, and both Chi-Chi and Oolong were now shackled with their hands behind their backs.

"Yes, but set him up with a prison set, I want monkey-boy as restrained as possible for the flight back." Mai ordered, her aqua eyes trained hard on Goku.

Soon enough both Goku's wrists and ankles were locked in shackles, the two pairs of cuffs being linked by a thick length of chain that was just long enough to allow the boy to shuffle along as he was herded into a large transport he'd never seen before.

As he sat down next to a cowering Bulma Goku listened as Mai spoke into a black, rectangular device. Her voice was firm and confident, and it brought up the same feelings that had flared when he'd met Bulma, but they were cooled once he heard what she was saying.

"We've got them sir, all six balls are accounted for, and we're returning to the castle now with the prisoners as ordered. It won't be much longer; world domination is all but yours Emperor Pilaf."

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Okay, well that took longer than I wanted it too, but we're almost at the end of the dragon ball hunt. The next chapter will fully introduce Pilaf, and expose Goku's Great Ape form to the rest of the group.**_

 _ **Now, I played with Mai's age in this story. She's about the age of her future counterpart from Dragon Ball Super, and will be just as skillful in terms of combat. In Dragon Ball I feel like she was forced to be underplayed due to the focus on comedy, so I'm going to try and bring out her character more.**_

 _ **Before anyone says anything about Chi-Chi, think back to her actual interactions with Goku as a child. I may have laid it on a little heavier here, but she was in fact a shy and easily embarrassed individual where Goku was concerned. I also changed her outfit because I just personally didn't care for the look they give her in the beginning. Basically, Chi-Chi is wearing the same uniform she had on when she fights Goku in the tournament, and her rings take the place of that weird helmet she had on as a kid.**_

 _ **'Kishi' is what Knight translated to on my search, which is why that's the nickname Chi-Chi gives to Goku. It won't be heavily used because I don't want to confuse anyone by calling him too many different things, but I feel like giving Goku a nickname is something a young Chi-Chi would have done.**_

 _ **The different colors of the Kamehameha is important, and will be explained once Goku reaches the time to be trained by Kami.**_

 _ **Not sure what else to say here. Um, I think I explained that writing perverted dialogue isn't easy for me just because of how silly and honestly stupid it seems to me, so sorry for anyone who thinks Roshi isn't acting like...well, Roshi.**_

 _ **So, anyway, I hope you enjoyed this update, and I'll do my best to not make you wait so long for the next one.**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: I'm gonna come right out and say this about this chapter: I don't like it! And the reason I don't like it and never will like it, is because the original version of it that I wrote was sooo~ much better! This chapter should have been out OVER a WEEK ago, after I worked on it for like eight freaking hours straight but noo~ MY LAPTOP CRASHED! I had literally just finished the chapter, saved it and everything, when my screen just went black. When I opened everything back up that file was literally the only one in my whole system that was corrupted; I'm guessing it's because it was still open when the crash happened.**_

 _ **But that doesn't matter! I tried for over an hour to get that file back and it just didn't happen, so I've been down on myself and angry for the last week. I was so happy with the first version of this chapter, and now I'm stuck with...this. It just, doesn't feel the same when I know what it was supposed to be.**_

 _ **I'm sorry if this sounds like I'm complaining, I'm just really upset about what happened. Anyway, even if I can't enjoy this chapter I hope at least some of you readers can.**_

 _ **Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch. 5- A Ferocious Full-Moon night; Goku's Monstrous Transformation!**_

 _ **Xxx**_

The journey to Pilaf's castle was a short one, but to Goku it seemed to take ages when he was riding with the likes of Oolong and Chi-Chi. The shape-shifting pig was huddled beside Roshi's unconscious form, his ongoing worrying grating on the young alien's nerves, while the Ox-King's daughter clung to Goku's left arm. Chi-Chi was shivering in fright, and Goku could easily pick up the girl's fearful whimpering even if she'd been in the cockpit of the transport. To his right, the monkey-tailed martial artist caught Bulma quaking too, from the corner of his eye, although she seemed to be holding together just a little better than Chi-Chi; there was no whimpering coming from her corner.

Goku's musings were cut short when the young princess finally managed to speak.

"W-What do you t-think they want with us?" She stuttered, terrified for her life.

Although it wasn't as if Goku could find it in himself to blame her. The girl's father, who she'd imagined to be invincible, was laying knocked out cold right in front of her. Add to this, that she'd been taken from her home in the middle of the night, to a strange place surrounded by strange men and women, and Goku wasn't sure what other response would be appropriate for the girl. However, knowing this still did nothing for the boy's inability to comfort her; it just wasn't in his nature.

So instead, he told the truth. "I'd say it's pretty obvious what they want; the dragon balls. And they kidnapped all of us to make sure we didn't try and get the way of this 'Emperor Pilaf' making his wish. What happens after however, I honestly can't say."

None of this seemed to help, and Chi-Chi's shivers only seemed to worsen at the thought of what would happen to her.

Once again, Goku was silently glad it was a short ride.

After the aircraft landed, Mai had one of her men bring both Ox-King and Roshi back to the world of consciousness with a pack of smelling salts. From there the group was marched down the ramp, and it was here that Goku felt a bit impressed with Emperor Pilaf. The large castle that greeted the young alien was huge, far bigger than that of the Ox-King, and seemed to be crawling with guards. Each body that Goku could see was equipped with much of the same uniform as those who had abducted them, and carried a weapon just like them as well. This helped reinforce the young pre-pubescent martial artist's belief that, attempting to fight the enemy while watching out for Bulma and Chi-Chi's safety, was a terrible idea.

The band of prisoners were herded down the exit ramp, and away from the landing bay with Mai acting as their escort. On either side of their troupe Goku could easily count out at least eight men, each one tensed and ready to react to even the slightest movement. As they were prodded along though the young boy with the monkey tail took surreptitious glances at his surroundings, in a hope to see any sort of way out, but sadly all the boy could see was the cold slabs of brick that made up the hallway walls.

However, Goku still held his head high as he was marched along. He knew of one sure way out of Pilaf's castle; all the boy needed was the right conditions. Behind him though, the pre-teen could easily make out the sound of Yamcha whispering some foolishly inept effort to comfort the fearful beauty.

"H-Hey, don't y-you worry about a thing B-Bulma, the second I g-get the chance I-I'll bust out of these chains a-and put these l-losers in their place." Yamcha choked out; his fear of beautiful women making him feel as if his tongue had lodged in his throat. Beside him, Bulma could only manage to shoot him an unconvinced look before a symphony of mocking laughter filled the hall.

It was Mai.

The female soldier only gave the slightest look over her shoulder, just enough to give Yamcha a dismissive once over, before she tore into him. "You, beat any one of _my_ men? Not even on an off day you sad excuse for a petty thief; I've seen the way you fight. I watched your battle against this boy, Goku, and bore witness to your mediocre skills. No, you won't be going anywhere or saving anyone, so I suggest you start accepting your fate."

"Just as _I_ suggest you don't call me 'Goku', Commander Mai." The young alien boy retorted, drawing the woman's attention to him. He was walking ahead of the trio, falling behind only the Ox-King who stumbled along in front of him, but the wild-haired youth did offer the smallest turn of his head so as to see Mai as he spoke. Goku's onyx eyes were harsh and cold, and his face was set into a firm lock that told those that saw it just how unhappy he was to hear a total stranger refer to him with such familiarity.

He'd let it slide with the Ox-King's daughter out of pure interest in having a meal in her home, but Mai was a woman who had kidnapped him, stole his dragon balls, and was keeping his only friend hostage. Familiar they were _not_ , and as such, Goku felt it wrong to hear the name Gohan gave him come from between her lips.

And that was why the woman's response was so puzzling to him. "Oh, my apologies, then you prefer the name 'Kakarot' I assume?"

She was trying to temper it, Goku could tell, but there was a distinct desire to keep him happy laced in those words. So, instead of pondering it himself, the boy simply brought it to the female soldier's attention. "That's right; but why the sudden need to accommodate me, Commander?"

Mai stared straight at the boy walking in front of her, making sure she had perfect eye contact with the lone orb he was allowing her to see, before answering. "Because I wish for you to join me, Kakarot. I want you to stand at my side and help whip my men into shape; teach them your martial arts, the Kamehameha Wave. It has been my goal ever since Emperor Pilaf discovered you."

"Join _you_?" Goku stressed, giving the azure-eyed soldier a single raised brow. "Sounds a bit...personal, don't you think? Besides, what's in it for me if I do; your Emperor has already stolen my dragon balls, and imprisoned my friend for whatever purpose he has for her. Those don't sound like very nice incentives to me."

"Well, Kakarot, my Emperor has actually brought Miss Briefs here to offer her a position of employment; to be the head of his R&D department. That's why she's still here. As for the dragon balls, I'm sure he'll allow you to track them down again and make your own wish, once you've proven loyal of course."

"Of course," Goku scoffed. "Just like how I'm sure he's just brought the Ox-King and Roshi here to offer them jobs as janitors. Commander I may still be young, but I am in no way a fool. I know what you're really after, and I for one want no part in it. Although I will give you a piece of advice to pass along to your _Emperor_ ; from what I can gather, the people of this world are content with their current ruler, so I doubt they'll take kindly to Pilaf so rudely taking the reigns. He may have his own army, but the world is a big place, and there are more people on it than there are in his pocket."

With that Goku turned his head back around and focused on trying not to trip over his bindings. In doing so however, he missed the shocked looks that Yamcha and Oolong were giving him, as well as the impressed gleam in Bulma's eye as she let that feeling quell a great amount of her fear. If Goku could still be so calm, then there was nothing to worry about.

Beside her though, Mai was having a very different train of thought run through her head. She needed Kakarot to accept her proposal, or else Pilaf was just going to kill him along with the others! But the monkey-tailed martial artist seemed adamant about wanting nothing to do with her, or her military might, which put Mai in-between a rock and a hard place; if the boy had been older, she was sure there was _another_ way to convince him, but as it stood the young commander looked to be out of options.

 _'Perhaps, if I'm careful, I can smuggle him out of the chamber before sunrise and hide him away.'_ The young woman fret internally. _'Just long enough so that I can convince him, that joining me is for the best, and then I can present him to the Emperor. Yes, that's my best move for now...I only hope it works.'_

The group didn't travel much further before they came to a thick, iron door. Mai stepped ahead of them then, and after letting the palm reader scan her hand she ushered the prisoners into the surprisingly large but empty room. However, the woman put her hand on Goku's shoulder to stop him. After the rest of them passed by she spoke, quietly, so as not to draw attention to her pleading tone.

"Kakarot, please, this is your last chance. Join me, help train my army; if you do you'll be able to get your hands on whatever you want in this world. _Please_."

His answer confused, as much as worried her. "You know Commander, if I remember right it's supposed to be a full moon tonight. I hope you get to see it"

That line haunted Mai long after she closed the door on him, and lingered in the back of her brain as she turned and began to make her way to her Emperor's throne room. He would want to know about her success as soon as possible, while she tried to shake off the shivers that Goku's words sent up her spine.

 _ **xXx**_

Walking up to the large, thick oaken doors Mai steeled her nerve so as not to draw Pilaf's curiosity. She couldn't have him thinking she was weak, so easily frightened by the words of a simple _boy_ , after all. Once she reached the entrance Pilaf's guards stood stiff at attention, snapping off salutes before she let them be at ease. Telling them she had important business with Pilaf pertaining to her mission the guards quickly let her pass, opening the grandiose doors for her as she went.

Upon entering the throne room Mai was once again amused by its simplicity. There were no great works of art hanging from the walls, nor opulent chandlers or bobbles hanging about. No, there was simply a long and lush red carpet that stretched from the entry all the way up and over a small series of steps, that ended at the one singular statement of Pilaf's status.

A throne. One with high, gracefully arched backrest and plated in a brilliant gold with luxurious and rich purple cushioning. The arm rests were etched with a highly-detailed mural on their sides, depicting images of a short goblin-like creature standing before a large and imposing dragon. The same creature that was currently sitting in the throne.

Emperor Pilaf was a short, vicious looking thing. He stood no taller than Goku, even though he was most definitely older than the boy, with a wiry build that was hidden beneath a large robe. The top was made from Chinese silk, and a deep lime-green color; there was a stretch of inky black down the center though, with the symbol for 'Power' boldly printed across the chest. Around the neckline was a pompous amount of snow-white ruffles. Almost hidden by the billowing robe was a pair of jet-black pants, which ended at Pilaf's imp feet that he kept bare. The creatures fingers and toes ended in razor-like claws, and fit well on his tapered digits. A glint of light drew Mai's attention to the Emperor's face, and to his jagged fangs; ones which, she knew, could easily shred the chords of a grown man's throat. Above that gross smirk was a gnarled, pointed nose and a set of large but beady eyes. The imp's frightful face was framed by a pair of pointed ears, while his tuft of oily black hair was covered by a ridiculous cap. And, to top it all off, the imp's skin was a the same pastel blue as the sky.

All in all, Emperor Pilaf by himself was nothing to look at, but when his enemies pushed him into a corner Mai knew the ugly little creature could be deadly. And that was before he brought the weight of his army down on you.

Shaking off that thought, Mai bowed deep at the waist before rising to speak. "Emperor Pilaf, I bring great news. As when I called from the transport I've successfully retrieved the remaining six dragon balls for you, as well as brought all prisoners you requested to the castle. They now await you in the 'Fryer', whenever you're ready to address them."

"Good," Pilaf breathed. "I knew once I separated you from Shu, that your productivity would increase, you've done splendidly Mai. Speaking of which, I have that fool outside preparing the alter where I'll be summoning the dragon, I don't very well want the thing destroying my palace once he's released you know."

"Of course not, sire." Mai nodded in affirmation. On the outside she was perfectly calm, but internally the commander could feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as she thought about the summoning ceremony. It made her think back to Kakarot's warning, of how the people of Earth would mutiny against Pilaf. Unfortunately the woman knew there was little she could do about it; there was no way Pilaf would listen to her on such a matter. Not when his wish was practically in his lap.

A brief motion brought the beautiful soldier's attention back to the imp on the throne, and her azure eyes watched as Pilaf brought down the monitor that connected with the dungeon. There was a brief bit of static, and then Mai could see the faces of the prisoners on the screen.

 _ **xXx**_

It was probably not more than fifteen or twenty minutes before Goku was watching a panel of wall slide away, and reveal a television screen like he'd seen in Bulma's capsule home. The monitor buzzed with static for a moment before the monkey-tailed youth was looking into the face of a hideous little blue creature.

 _'Emperor Pilaf I suppose,'_ Goku thought dryly. _'The fool doesn't look like much, he must use his wealth to make up for his weakness.'_

As if to confirm the boy's guess, Pilaf quickly introduced himself once he noticed everyone was looking at him. "Good evening ladies and gentlemen, I am Emperor Pilaf. Now I know some of you are wondering what you're doing here, since I've clearly gotten my hands on all seven dragon balls, so I feel it's only fare to explain and then give each of you a chance to save yourselves."

Pilaf first turned his eyes on Bulma, the imp's lewd stare and grimy smile enough to make the blue-haired beauty sick. "Miss Briefs, or perhaps you prefer Bulma, I've invited you here to offer you a place in my employ. Once my wish is granted and I become ruler of the world, I'll need a brilliant mind such as yours to help me in creating weapons that'll keep the less... _malleable_ minds in their place. I would ask your father, but I'm sure the men in your group can figure out why such an arrangement just wouldn't be as _rewarding_ for me."

"There not the only ones," Bulma seethed in disgust. "It's pretty obvious what my role would be you little freak, and I'll tell you right now that it's definitely _not_ gonna happen. I'd rather stay locked up in here forever than have anything to do with an animal like you."

Pilaf's already blue face turned a deep, plum-like purple as he grit his fangs in rage. Snorting a breath of indignation from his nostrils the portentous creature growled in response. "We'll see just how defiant you are when I'm through with you, _wench_." But then, before the imp could say anymore, Ox-King's deep voice filled the air.

"You tried this with me once before, Pilaf. You threatened my home with destruction if I didn't lend my vast wealth to your schemes, and I'm sure you remember how that went, so why don't you do the smart thing and let us all go?"

"Oh I would," the self-proclaimed emperor waved dismissively. Then his face twisted into a sneer as he leaned in close to the screen. "Except this time I'm not going to ask; I'll simply raid your castle once you're good and dead Ox-king!"

This bit of news shocked the large man, and he couldn't help taking a step back as he stared at the blue monster on screen. "W-What!? Are you crazy, who do you think you are!?"

"I think I'm about to become Emperor of the World!" Pilaf shouted back in spiteful glee. "You had your chance to join me Ox, but now both you and your daughter will pay for your insolence! Once morning comes, I'll televise your demise as warning to all those who contend my rightful place as ruler!" It was here that Pilaf broke out into a grotesque laugh; sounding like a mix between a frog's ribbit and hyena's cackle.

At least, until Goku's chill voice sifted into the conversation. "So I was right; you really are nothing but a coward. How... _disappointing_."

Pilaf's barking halted immediately, and his face screwed into a sour look as he peered down his crooked nose at the boy who'd spoken. Attempting to seem nonplussed, the little imp lifted a single eyebrow as he responded. "And _you_ are the little circus freak they call _Goku_ ; a ridiculous name if I've ever heard one. And don't even think about trying to threaten me about calling you 'Carrot' or whatever it is you go by, because in a few hours you'll just be another name crossed off the list."

Before Goku could reply however, Roshi's voice cut him off. "And you're okay with that; killing children? What sort of monster are you, Chi-Chi and Kakarot have done you no wrong, let them go!"

The ear-splitting laugh was back again, only this time there was a malicious undertone before Pilaf finally calmed himself enough to reply. "You ask if I'm alright with it, old man, yet you just answered your own question. I'm a monster, we're free from such foolish notions like guilt and humanity. And it's not about what they've _done_ but what they could do in the future; I can't have any threats to my conquest, no matter how small."

"And that's where I get my curiosity," Goku speared in. "How exactly do you intend to rid yourself of the competition Pilaf? I can tell, from your attitude, that it's going to be something showy so how about letting us in on it?"

"If you're really so eager to know, then fine, I'll tell you." Pilaf glared, agitated that such a small child was speaking to him in such a rude way. "You see that I've given you all a _lovely_ view of the night sky correct? Well, that's because the ceiling is made from an inverted magnifying glass. While this may mean nothing to any of you right now, once the sun rises you're all going to starting feeling a bit...cooked. And then, once noon hits and the sun centers in the sky, you'll all be turned into baked to perfection for my coronation lunch!"

As the villainous little monster broke out into another peal of hideous laughter each prisoner had their own thoughts about the revelation of their fate. Chi-Chi broke out into another fit of heavy crying, burying herself in Ox-King's arms as she pleaded with him to do something, while both Yamcha and Oolong howled in fear. Bulma made like she was about to shriek in fear, but then she noticed that Goku hadn't reacted to the threat at all. He simply stood there, staring impassively at the imp on the screen.

Pilaf didn't seem to take notice of this however, and instead turned his beady black eye on her one last time. "Now that you know what awaits these other fools, have you changed your mind about joining me Bulma? It'd be such a waste to see such a lovely specimen, with a brilliant mind to match, charred by the harsh rays of the sun. Surely you can see that standing with me is the smart thing to do?"

Bulma's answer was to scoff, folding her arms as she shot Pilaf a stinging glare. "No, I don't think that it is, and any way I'd rather fry in here than be turned into your little play thing. So no thanks."

"You say that now," the little imp foamed with vexation. "But just you wait Bulma, when that sun rises and you start to feel the heat seer that perfect skin of yours, I guarantee you'll be _begging_ to work for me. Until then, I hope you and the rest of these fools enjoy watching the clouds!"

With that Pilaf shut off the link and the television screen was once again covered by a thick slab of brick wall. From there it was silent for only a moment before Oolong's fearful bellowing filled the chamber. The talking pig turned toward Roshi and cried, "Well don't just stand there, use that Kamehameha thing from earlier to get us outta here!"

This seemed to click the memory on for many of the other prisoners too, who turned their now hopeful eyes on the elderly martial arts master. Only to have them crushed by what he had to say.

"If this was at least five years ago I could, but I'm out of practice and just don't have the energy to do more than one max power Kamehameha a day anymore. If I tried, even a small one right now, it could kill me. And unfortunately by the time I'm fully charged again it'll be too late; I'm sorry everybody."

This wasn't what Oolong wanted to hear. The shape-shifting porker nibbled fearfully on his fingertips for a moment before remembering something else; Kakarot knew the Kamehameha Wave too! However when he brought it up to the boy, the idea was shot down a second time, although for different reasons. "If I did that we'd still need to get past all of Pilaf's guards; something that'll be that much harder after I expend energy to do the technique. And like Mai mentioned before, even between Roshi, the Ox-King and myself there's still just no way of making sure all the non-fighters in our group made it out safely. It just isn't a good idea Oolong."

"Well then what else are we supposed to do, sit here and wait to be turned into crispy bacon!?" Oolong shouted; his fear mixing with anger at this point. "Because I don't know about you kid, but I for one don't wanna die tomorrow, so how about you make with the fancy moves and get me outta here!"

There was another stretch of silence at after this, broken only by the sound of the talking pig huffing through his nose in an effort to draw in precious oxygen that he'd lost during his tirade. But that was soon forgotten about when Bulma's soft voice filled the air instead. "You won't do it will you Goku, because you've already figured out a way to get us out of here, haven't you?"

The boy in question looked to Bulma for a moment, a bit of disbelief clouding his eyes. She couldn't have really figured it out, could she? But seeing the earnest look she gave him made Goku feel as if telling the truth was the only option. "I do, but I'll need the clouds to part first."

Yamcha snorted at this. "Pft, what are you, a werewolf?"

"No...a giant ape." Goku corrected. "I realized I could transform a while ago, after Gohan warned me about the full moon and tried to keep me away from it. With my tail, and the knowledge that the monster only came out one night a month, it was easy to figure out."

As he spoke Goku watched for each occupants reaction to his revelation. It was obvious most of them found it hard, almost impossible to believe, but seeing both Bulma as well as Chi-Chi look at him with concern in their eyes made the boy wary. Could he trust them with the truth; the story of Gohan's death?

It was a painful memory for the hardhearted warrior even now, so many weeks later, but one that Goku was sure he would never truly forget. He had snuck out of the house after dark, once Gohan was good and asleep, to partake in some extra training; the old man pushed him, sure, but the wild-haired youth found himself constantly unsatisfied with his workouts. As such his nightly escapades began. However, Goku lost track of just what day it was, and left during a full moon. The forms he practiced didn't give him any real time to notice it, but after wearing himself out the boy dropped to the grassy field in exhaustion and stared up into the sky...into the full moon.

It was here Goku's memory began to fail him. Everything got hazy and there was only the sounds of something animalistic roaring in his ears, but right before that, in the split second before the transformation began Goku was sure of one thing. There was a voice. It was deep, and rumbled with a primitive sort of power the likes of which Goku had never known, and it spoke just one word...

Conquer!

From there Goku only remembers waking to the bright light of the sun, and then finding Gohan's crushed corpse a few yards from their home. The sight of the elderly man's mutilated body churned something within the boy's stomach, something unpleasant, but he couldn't identify what it was. All he knew was that he never wanted to feel it again.

And yet now, in order to save Bulma and keep Chi-Chi from dying at such a young age, Goku was going to have to risk that loss of control again. It angered him, not knowing and not being able to remember, it felt like his body wasn't his own. It sickened him, and it caused Goku to scorn his transformed state. Something that Bulma seemed to take note of.

"You don't wanna do it though, do you? There's something about the transformation that bothers you and so you don't really want to use it to get us out of here." Bulma stepped just a little closer to Goku as she spoke, careful not to spook him. "Goku, it's okay, you can say it-"

"I only hate that I don't remember anything after it happens, that's all." The monkey-tailed martial artist exclaimed in a half truth. "What good is the form if I can't even use the power for myself? But, that's not important right now, you—you all need my help so I'm going to do it. Just be sure to stay back while it happens; I don't wanna crush any of you."

The others didn't hear his slip, but Bulma did, and it filled her with a joy she hadn't felt since she'd built her first robot when she was five years old. She eyed the young boy with clear emotion in her crystal-blue eyes before backing into the corner with the others.

With the rest of the prisoners now at a safe distance Goku closed his eyes and took a long, deep breath. His heart thudded with anxious energy, and he could _feel_ the light of the full moon as it was finally revealed from behind dark clouds. The ethereal light shone down on him and the pure energy he felt came in waves. Those waves washed over his furry appendage, making it squirm and whip about in an almost euphoric frenzy. What felt like an electric tingle started to arc its way through the tail after a few seconds; starting from the base against his lower-back, and running up to spark at the tip. These sensation gave Goku goosebumps, and his breathing grew heavier with each passing moment, but still he stood there, letting the pulsating energy of the moon lap away at his body and fill him with power. The worry that had settled into his chest during the beginning was quickly being washed away with every burst of that delicious feeling coursing through his tail, until finally, Goku couldn't take it anymore and he threw his head up to stare at the full moon.

Oddly enough the transformation didn't come as immediately as before. This time there seemed to be a delay, one where Goku was able to feel the moment it began. There was that voice again, deep and primal like he remembered, but this time it started as a whisper as deep thrums of power began to beat through him like those of his heart.

 _'Conquer...'_

Goku could feel his heart stop a moment, and with it a pulsation stronger than any before shook his body.

 _ **'Conquer...'**_

The voice was louder now, and it continued to grow in strength and volume with every beat of Goku's heart. There were three more times that his heart pounded in his chest, three more pulsations that made every muscle in his body ache...three more pulsations before finally...

 _ **'CONQUER!'**_

Pain. Immeasurable, indescribable pain the likes of which Goku had never experienced tore through his body. The alien child lurched forward, his head snapping and eyes focusing on the floor. Goku's head filled with that same ferocious roar from his memories, and unintentionally the young fighter copied it with a snarl twisting at his lips. His muscles tore themselves apart while his bones snapped to pieces, the sounds echoing around the room and filling everyone's ears as Goku spasmed under the weight of such terrible agony.

Over in their corner the rest of the prisoners watched, with varying thoughts and expressions as they watched the youngest member of their group undergo what clearly looked like a hideously awful transformation. And all in an effort to secure their freedom.

For Yamcha it was truly terrifying. As the desert bandit hugged the wall, his dark eyes stared wide in transfixed horror as Kakarot slowly seemed to change right in front of him. The once pint-sized child was gradually gaining in height as well as muscle, to the point where his clothes could no longer stand the strain and tore at the seams. The sound of shredding clothe mingled with the nauseating echoes of bones breaking to create a symphony of disgusting music; it quickly became too much to handle, and the older boy began to puke while Puar fainted.

Beside him Roshi watched behind his glasses with stern calculation. He'd been afraid, like the others at first, but after watching the boy begin to change he managed to settle himself. The martial arts master traced his eyes over every inch of Kakarot's body as he twisted and jerked in obvious pain. He could see the kid's eyes shrink until only the whites remained, and even those began to bleed a hellish red; like blood rubies from the pits of the underworld. Tufts of thick, russet fur began to sprout up across Kakarot's growing frame, until his entire body was covered in the stuff; by this time the once small child easily stood as tall as the Ox-King, if not larger.

Bulma and Chi-Chi both watched with hands over their hearts, although the princess was being kept back by her father while Bulma stood front and center. The two ladies looked on as the boy who changed both their lives grew to the size of a small tree, his body expanding with furry mounds of muscle while his face contorted and shifted into a snarling snout; complete with dagger like fangs and dollops of drool drizzling from his mouth. Each girl tried their best to send their feelings to him through their thoughts, hoping that somehow he'd hear them.

 _'Oh Goku...'_

 _'Oh Kishi-kun...'_

 _'Please be careful'_

It wasn't long before Goku's other worldly transformation came to a head, as _his_ head speared through the glass ceiling and lifted into the air. The great ape's large fists swung with defiance, as their owner grew angry with it's cramped living space. Powerful blows shook the dungeon and litters of debris fell under gravity's command, narrowly missing the handful of people below, but the transformed Goku gave no concern to such things. Instead, he threw back his head, and let out a mighty roar.

 _ **xXx**_

Emperor Pilaf stood in awe of the magnificence that was the wish-granting Shenron; the Eternal Dragon of Legend. The serpentine mthyos coiled across the pitch-black sky like the longest of winding roads; his tail being so long, that it disappeared into the brilliant glow of the very orbs that housed the creature. His body was covered in vibrant, lime-green scales with a rich tan underbelly and deep emerald trim. Shenron's long snout sported two long, thin whiskers that waved gently in a non-existent breeze and patches of thick patches of hair lined his sharp cheeks. Finally, the dragon's eyes were large crimson gems that glowed with a mystical energy. They were also staring right at Pilaf.

" _ **While I have enjoyed the fresh air, I do not wish to float here all day. Speak your wish now, or if you have forgotten it then simply wish for nothing, so that I may go."**_

That seemed to do the trick, because Pilaf soon sputtered out of his stupor and managed to address the great dragon. "O-Oh, yes of course, my apologies Eternal Dragon. You see, I've been looking forward to this day since I was a boy, and now that it's finally here I-"

" _ **SPEAK!"**_ The agitated dragon interrupted, his eyes burning with his growing displeasure.

"Right, sorry!" Pilaf bowed hastily before drawing in a deep breath. This was it, this was his moment. Pilaf turned his beady black eyes to Shenron and finally found his voice. "Oh, mighty and magnificent Eternal Dragon, grant my wish; make me, Pilaf, the ruler of the-!"

" _ **ROOOOOAAAAWWWWWRRRRR!"**_

Mai was the first to turn her eyes to the vicious howl, but both Pilaf and Shu followed immediately, and what they saw had the little blue imp dropping to his knees. His breath came up short, and he felt his hands tremble as the scene before him unfolded.

Pilaf's castle, his _home_ , was being torn apart by an Oozaru.

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Well, there's the fifth chapter. Or at least, the outline of events is basically the same, because the dialogue didn't feel anywhere near as powerful as what I had in the original edit of this chapter. Oh well, that's just the way life is I guess.**_

 _ **Anyway, I want to explain a few things about both Goku and Pilaf in terms of their looks, just to make my vision a little clearer. For Goku I imagine him in the same design as from the movie Path to Power except his gi is all white with a black sash and wristbands. As for Pilaf, I envision him as sort of a cross between the goblins from Harry Potter and Gollum from Lord of the Rings in my version. So yeah, my Pilaf is actually pretty threatening as I hope I've made clear.**_

 _ **Another thing is the transformation; I wanted the first time Oozaru's are introduced to be special, to have an impact. As such I went into detail about Goku's transformation and both his thoughts on it as well as other peoples. But before I'm questioned about how Goku feels about the transformation I want to reiterate the very important fact that this is MY version of KAKAROT; of what Goku could have been like if he hadn't hit his head. Because that's very important.**_

 _ **Oh, and I'll be glad to explain why I feel he can still ride the nimbus too. You see, the definition of being 'Pure of heart' is: To be without malice, treachery, or evil intent. To be honest, sincere, and guileless.**_

 _ **To be guileless can be, to be without deception OR naive. Kakarot is honest, and when he hides the truth it is not out of any negative emotion but simply the inability to trust those he's speaking too. He does not want to open up. He is also without true malice or evil intent; his mind does not stray to thoughts of destroying the planet, despite what I have Bulma thinking in earlier chapters.**_

 _ **As such, I personally believe that my Kakarot would still be capable of riding the nimbus.**_

 _ **Anyway, I'm not too sure what else to say here, so I'll just leave you all with this and hope that you enjoy this chapter. The Pilaf Saga ends next chapter and will also be the beginning of Goku's training under Master Roshi. There will also be the introduction of Krillin too, so I hope you look forward to it.**_

 _ **Also, I'll do my best to update quicker with this story since there's so much to cover from Dragon Ball/Z. I'm sorry we're still in early Dragon ball.**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**Ch. 6- New rivals bring new mysteries; what's wrong with Goku!?**_

 _ **xXx**_

Mai found opening her eyes to be a daunting task, but with the way she was being hammered by the sun made any attempt at keeping them closed just as difficult. The female commander had a headache, it felt as if someone had just cracked _her_ in the skull with the butt of their gun, and there was the very real pain that came with having your ribs bruised. But other than that Mai would have to say she was alright.

 _'Which is a real miracle all things considered,'_ she thought dryly as memories of the night before resurfaced. The night of the full moon.

A roar from some dinosaur off in the distance brought back that first look Mai had gotten at the Oozaru that would later be the cause for Pilaf's castle crumbling to rubble. The sheer size of the mythical beast was beyond anything Mai had ever imagined; she thought they were merely legend. But then, the dragon balls were said to only be a story too. And yet, as she looked upon the giant ape in all its terrifying glory Mai couldn't help but think back to Kakarot and his final words to her.

 _'H-He's the Oozaru,'_ the battered commander realized from her place in the sand. _'It's the only explanation, especially with that tail of his, and yet it's still so hard to believe! Just what kind of person is that kid?'_

Images of towers falling and bullets flying once again filled the woman's mind. Memories of how Pilaf's soldiers had tried so desperately to bring down the transformed Kakarot with their military-grade weaponry, only to fail miserably as their titanic foe simply brushed them off like the most annoying of gnats. Mai easily recalled the fearful awe she'd felt as she watched every armor-piercing round barely even make a mark against the large ape's burly frame.

And then the true destruction began.

Kakarot opened his maw wide, his fangs gleaming even with the moon blocked by heavy black clouds, and began firing bursts of hell-fire red energy from within. Mai likened them to shooting stars; beautiful to look at, but deadly to be near when they came crashing down. It was with these that the transformed Kakarot eventually decimated Pilaf's castle. The imp himself had become frothy with rage by this point though, and had rushed to his fighter plane with Shu, thinking that he could bring the gargantuan gorilla down with a pair of missiles.

He was wrong.

They got the Oozaru to stumble, but that was it before the beast turned and swatted the pair out of the sky. Pilaf and Shu survived of course, both being too stubborn to die, but they didn't walk away unscathed. And, unfortunately, neither had she as the two managed to come crashing down near where Mai had been hiding herself. Try as she might to outrun the felled plane Mai just wasn't quick enough, and the resounding shockwaves of the crash tore her from the ground and sent her face-panting into the hard mounds of desert sand. It was after she fought off the waves of nausea and ringing in her ears that the female commander finally managed to roll herself over, at which point she watched Shenron disappear in a blinding light and the dragon balls scatter once again.

Not till this next morning, after she regained consciousness, did Mai finally understand what happened. Kakarot's friends had used the wish to change him back to normal.

 _'At least until the next full moon.'_ Mai thought with a grimace. She only hoped that next time, she wasn't anywhere near the boy when that happened. But...the shouts from her boss were telling her that wasn't going to be an option.

"Mai, where are you! Those rotten mongrels _stole_ my wish, and so now they're going to pay!"

While the female commander was cursing her luck, miles away at Fire Mountain the very same boy she'd been thinking about was just saying goodbye to the Ox-King and his daughter. Goku was dressed in a new gi, one the color of a deep plum, had just raised from a bow as he finished. "I apologize again for what you and your daughter had to experience last night, Ox-King, and can only hope that with my leave Pilaf won't have any reason to bother you again."

Ox-King shook his head gravely as he countered. "Pilaf is a foul creature whose goal in life is the subjugation of the world; as a king myself, I will always be a target for destruction in his eyes. All I ask is that if anything ever happened to me, that you take care of my daughter Kakarot."

Goku quirked an eyebrow at this, folding his arms as he replied. "Trusting the safety of your child to that of another child? I think Bulma would be better suited to act as Chi-Chi's guardian should you fall Ox-King."

The mountain of a man went to protest, but the crystal-eyed girl in question took that as an opportunity to throw in her two cents. She could see where Ox-King was going with his request, and wanted to head him off before he unknowingly crushed his daughters budding crush. "And I'll be more than happy to do it; besides I'm _sure_ Goku will visit me a lot, so he and Chi-Chi will have lots of time to _get to know each other_."

While normally a bit on the dense side, the Ox-King was just quick enough to catch on to the tone Bulma was trying to remind him of their conversation in the hover car. If he wanted there to be any hope for his daughter marrying Kakarot, he would need to take it slow. So, slapping a smile onto his own bearded face, the burly monarch accepted the older girl's offer. And then a flash of color caught his eye, and the man looked to see his daughter standing beside a waiting Kakarot.

Chi-Chi could feel her cheeks burn with nervous energy but the demure princess didn't dare turn back. After witnessing the transformation of her handsome savior, and then seeing the angry look in his dark orbs after the Eternal Dragon changed him back, Chi-Chi wanted nothing more than to make it known she still felt safe with Kakrot. "U-Um, Kishi-kun, I just wanted to say that I-I...Thank you. Thank you for saving me last night, and again for saving my home. I-I'll never forget about you and well, I-I was just wondering...do you think y-you'll still think about _me_ after you leave?"

For his part Goku was still in a mood over the night before. Bulma had explained how, with the help of the dragon Shenron, they had destroyed the moon and thus reverted his transformation before he could hurt too many people. Unfortunately, they acted a bit too late, and now the young alien had a bit more blood on his hands in the few soldiers lives he'd taken while transformed. However, Goku knew better than to direct his anger at an innocent like Chi-Chi, so before he answered the alien boy took a deep breath.

"It won't be something like where I do it all the time, and it probably won't be a daily thing either, but I'm sure there will be days when I think about you Chi-Chi. You are very...kind, and your hospitality was greatly appreciated."

Chi-Chi ducked her head at his compliments, too bashful to see that her crush held a look on discomfort on his face as he attempted to word his response correctly. For her, it was enough just to know that her knight in shining armor would remember her in a good way. Chi-Chi had been worried she was too clingy, too obvious.

Unfortunately all things must come to an end, and Goku decided that his words with the village princess would be the last as he called to Bulma and Oolong that it was time to depart.

"Where will you go?" Roshi asked him as he hopped up onto his own air transport.

"I thought it was obvious," the wild-haired boy countered. "I'm going with you, back to your island, so that you can train me for this 'World Tournament' thing you told me about last night."

"Then you'll have to go alone, Goku." Bulma told him with a sorrowful expression. "Because my break ends soon and I have to get back to University; I can' really afford to miss the beginning of my last semester."

Goku turned sharply at this bit of news; Bulma...was leaving? The alien fighter could only stare at the blue-haired girl with an unreadable expression after he managed to wipe the look of shock off his face. In the beginning, Goku hadn't given much thought to what would happen after he and Bulma found all seven dragon balls, but now that it was really happening he...he didn't know what to do. She was his only friend, and she was going away?

Such a thing shouldn't bother him, that primal part of his brain told him, he should be able to go on with his life despite not having Bulma around. And yet the other part of him, the one raised by Gohan, told him that her departure was something profound; something he should _feel_ towards.

Goku did not like _that_ part of his brain.

"What is 'University', Bulma?" Was the only thing the kid could get out, but he was mentally proud of himself for asking the question without a hitch in his breath.

"It's school Goku, a place to learn and something I need to go to in order to run my family's company in a few years. I-I'm a genius though, so I've almost finished with it, and I'll _definitely_ be there to cheer you on at the tournament, okay?"

The look had been brief, but Bulma was sure she'd seen a mask of discontent flitter across her friend's face when she announced her plans to depart back to West City. It pained her too, leaving behind the one person besides her parents who treated her like something more than something to look at, but what she'd told the boy was the truth. Her final term for school was starting in a few days and she needed to be ready; there was no chance of her father's board letting her run _any_ projects without the right degrees. Failure was not an option, no matter how much it hurt to leave her friend.

Bulma's discomfort was eased though by the way Goku looked at her when she mentioned meeting him at the tournament. She'd apparently said the right thing, and this made _her_ feel better...until another voice filled the air to ruin it.

"U-University, a-at fifteen?" Yamcha sputtered in disbelief. The shaggy-haired teen gawked at the blue-haired beauty with a look that was one part amazed, and another part dismay. His insecurities reared their ugly heads, telling him that a woman like Bulma wouldn't want anything to do with a high school dropout, until his inner scoundrel managed to bulldoze its way through. It was brief, as his fear of beautiful woman was sill strong, but having just spent a night worrying if he was going to die Yamcha felt emboldened to take a chance.

So, straightening his back and lifting his quivering chin, Yamcha looked to Bulma and cleared his throat to get her attention. "B-Bulma," he stuttered out when she turned to him. He tried his best to ignore the dismissive look she was giving him as he pushed on. "I-I was wondering, since you'll have m-more free time what with the d-dragon ball hunt being over, if you maybe wanted to...g-go out on a d-date...with _me_?"

A single, elegant eyebrow arched on Bulma's pretty face while Oolong scoffed somewhere off to the side. The young genius could even see Goku out of the corner of her eye, his face was a mix of annoyance and confusion. She guessed that the latter came from not knowing what a 'date' was, while the agitation she figured was from having their moment interrupted. Letting out a breath, as if to show answering such a request was exhausting, Bulma finally turned her attention to the boy known as Yamcha.

"If you clean yourself up, and then ask me again, I'll consider it. I live in West City at the Capsule Corps. main building, so when you think you're scrubbed up enough you can find me there."

Not too interested in seeing the look she _knew_ was on the boy's face at the prospect of taking her out, Bulma turned her attention back to Goku. Offering the younger boy another smile, she released a jet-copter from its capsule and offered a final word before climbing inside. "I'm really glad I got to meet you Goku; my offer to visit goes out to you too, so please feel free to visit me. I hope your training goes well, and I'll see you at the tournament, okay?"

The boy with the monkey tail offered a rare smile of his own before he hopped onto his yellow cloud and followed after Roshi, who had just taken to the air.

 _'Sure'_ , Bulma thought as she revved her own engine, _'this journey may have come to a close, but something tells me my friendship with Goku is just beginning.'_

 _ **xXx**_

At the speed they were going, it didn't take Goku and Roshi long to reach the elderly martial arts master's island. Something the younger of the two was grateful for since he was itching to improve his skills before the World Tournament started. The pair whizzed down from the air, and after he hopped off the Nimbus, Goku addressed his interest in immediate training with Roshi.

"You wanna start _now_?" The old man inquired in disbelief. "B-But it's still so early; don't you think it'd be best to start a little later in the afternoon?"

Goku shook his head as he answered. "No, the earlier we start the better, besides I don't see any point in waiting. What do you expect me to do if we're not training Roshi; your island _isn't_ that big, in case you haven't noticed."

"Well no, it's not, but I had hoped to do a little...reading, before I had to start teaching ya Kakarot. And in the meantime you could go over some of the forms I'm sure Gohan showed you, you know, as a sort of warm-up."

"I've practiced those same kata for years Roshi, and I continued to practice them every morning since I left the mountains with Bulma, so I think it's about time I learned something new." At this Goku's face scrunched into a look of curious annoyance. "Unless you weren't serious before; and you don't really have anything to teach me?"

Roshi gaped at the young boy in front of him, his jaw dropping at the sure disrespect that laced Kakarot's tone. Never in all the elderly master's years had the Turtle-Hermit met such a pushy, and puzzling individual. Deciding to try and lay down the law early, Roshi turned his back on the monkey-tailed martial artist and began moving towards his screen door.

"I have much to teach you Kakarot, but I think your first lessons will be on respect and patience."

Goku watched with am incredulous look as his new teacher entered his pink, two-story home and closed the door...in his face. The gi-clad youth blinked owlishly for a moment before the reality of the situation hit him; he was being denied training. He was being made to _wait_. This irked Goku tremendously, as the longer he was forced to wait in beginning his training, the more of an edge his opponents would have on him during the tournament.

But, instead of barging in and demanding the old man get started with his training, Goku instead chose to think back on the night before, to his transformation. The young boy crouched low, his muscles coiling with power, before he leaped high into the air and landed softly atop the roof of Roshi's home. Once he was sure of his balance Goku settled down into the 'lotus' position and closed his eyes. With his vision cut to black, and the distractions of sight eliminated, the young alien then focused on evening out his breathing; calming his mind. Slow, deep breaths in through his nose and his mouth had Goku taking in the salty air of the sea aw well as the crisp air that brushed through his wild hair.

That wind was like a calming hand, with delicate and slender fingers combing his dark mane with a soothing tenderness beyond anything Goku had ever experienced. The breeze up in the mountains was never this smooth, never this precise. Normally Goku was left to deal with a choppy, dry wave that raked him more like a stiff hoe. But here, out in the open expanse of the ocean, the pre-pubescent youth was easily capable of letting his muscles relax and let his mind open wide. He was able to remember.

They didn't come clearly; each memory was fuzzy, like the screen had been before Pilaf's face filled it in. But it was a better than not being able to remember anything at all. Goku tried to focus on the grainy image of himself as a giant ape and watched snippets of blotchy memories play out of the large creature tear apart the castle that had kept him prisoner. He could hear the sound of his own roar, and make out horrified shrieks from what Goku could only assume were Pilaf's soldiers as they attempted to bring down an Oozaru. It was like watching something off a T.V. for Goku; seeing himself in third-person perspective. It was surreal.

But he let the memories continue to come, allowed his senses to become drowned in every sound and sensation from that full-moon night. He could feel the bullets now, those stinging little projectiles that Bulma had told him were fired from guns, just the same as when they'd pelted him last night. They hadn't hurt, but had merely been annoying like a bug bite. And then there was the feeling of being hit by a large fist against his back; Goku guessed this, and the second one following, were the 'missiles' that Bulma told him he'd been hit with. Those had been the closest thing the alien boy could see as being harmful as the memory fragment played out before him, and even then all his giant ape form had done was stumble.

From there it was a show of white-hot, brilliantly explosive bursts of mouth blasts. Goku marveled at his transformed state's ability to channel _ki_ in such a complicated manner, and fire it off in such successive volleys. The young alien boy watched as the memory showed him demolishing Pilaf's castle with those same violent attacks before he was finally brought down by Bulma wishing that Shenron destroy the moon; it being the cause for the transformation, and thus being the key to changing him back she surmised. The great dragon fired a bright, yellow beam from his mouth soon after, one which swiftly obliterated the full moon, and with its destruction Goku watched as his transformation did indeed reverse itself. The memory ended in a fog after that, as the return to humanoid form seemed to strain Goku's mental expanse he assumed.

It was with the end of that memory Goku opened his obsidian eyes again. His breath remained calm and his muscles were lax, but if one to were look they would see a new sense of fortitude gleaming in those black orbs.

Goku's tranquil state of mind was interrupted however, by the sound of a voice he did not recognize crying out through the air. Turning towards the noise he watched as a boy, looking to be around his age, rolled through a series of flips while making his way towards the island. Upon closer inspection, Goku could see that the whoever this other kid was had jumped from a small boat from out in the sea. The alien child's brow rose in amusement at this; the new kid was obviously seeking attention through a 'grand entrance'.

 _'Too bad it'll all be for nothing,'_ Goku thought with a roll of his eyes. _'Because at that speed, starting from that distance, there's only one way he could land-!'_ Goku shook his head as hi prediction came to pass, and the bald boy ended up with his head buried deep in the sand. _'Fool.'_

It wasn't until Roshi came out to inspect what all the noise was about, that Goku himself leaped from his perch and landed softly on the ground to check for himself. It didn't take long for the newcomer to pull themselves together, and when they did Goku found himself to be a bit interested. Whoever they were obviously practiced martial arts, and did so with fervor as they clearly showcased a body built from hours of laborious training. They were dressed in robes as well, there top an odd mustard-yellow with burnt-orange pants; the bald boy also wore pasty, yellow socks with tan shoes to complete the look. Taking note of the other boy's odd choice to shave his head, something Goku could see thanks to his superior vision, he also noticed the six odd marking on the kid's forehead. They matched his beady, black eyes.

All-in-all, Goku could say that while this new arrival looked a bit funny, he could prove to be an interesting new development with his obvious understanding of martial arts. However, the boy paid no attention to Goku, and instead made his intentions known immediately by setting his sights on Roshi.

"Ah, you're the great Master Roshi right?"

The old man shrugged, attempting to act nonchalant about the obvious brown-nosing. "People tell me that. What can I do for you?"

The young boy bowed low before rising again and introducing himself. "Master my name is Krillin; I am a former member of the Orin Temple. And I have traveled far from the east in humble hopes that you'll take me on as your student, so that I may one day perform martial arts as great as you."

Krillin's over-the-top attempts at flattery had Goku crossing his arms, and wrinkling his nose a bit in distaste. In his mind, such behavior was beneath anyone who considered themselves a martial artist. With the other boy's character taking a huge blow, Goku could only hope this Krillin was at least a decent fighter.

Roshi seemed to have a similar opinion, because the elderly martial arts master turned his nose up at Krillin as he dismissed the boy. "While that is a long way to travel, and the Orin Temple is a fairly difficult institution to be accepted into, I do not train every would-be student that shows up at my door. I'm sorry, but I'll have to turn you away Krillin."

There was a few seconds of charged silence after that, one in which both Goku and Roshi could see a twinkle flicker at the corner of Krillin's eye right before he went rustling around in his pack. It wasn't long before the boy pulled out a magazine...and Goku let out a long, suffering sigh.

A Play-bunny book.

Was _every_ martial artist a pervert?

"Perhaps some light _reading_ would help change your mind, Master?" Krillin teased with a knowing grin playing at his lips. That smirk split into a full-blown smile of victory as Roshi snatched the porn magazine from his fingers and began to flip through the pages, the old man wondering out loud how the bald youth had gotten his hands on the 'latest issue' already.

"I have my ways Master," the kid answered before Goku's scoff caught his attention. Finally turning to the other boy, Krillin gave Goku a uninterested glance before snorting. "And who are _you_ ; another chump hoping to be taught by the great Master Roshi?"

Goku's eyes narrowed, but he let a smirk of his own slid across his face as he replied. "My name is Kakarot, and if I'm a chump then what does that make you _Krillin_? I mean, considering that Roshi _asked_ _me_ if I wanted to study under him, while you were forced to use petty bribery to worm your way in."

This seemed to strike a nerve with the bald boy. And soon Krillin was right in Goku's face. "At least I take martial arts seriously; everyone knows that the greatest warriors shave there head. Just look at Master Roshi! If you were half as good as you're pretending to be you'd know that, and what the heck kind of name is 'Kakarot' anyway!?"

Not one for having his personal space invaded, Goku's smirk slipped into a calculating frown as he pushed Krillin to the ground. Looking down at the fuming other fighter, the monkey-tailed martial artist crossed his arms again and looked down his nose like he'd done with Yamcha back in the desert. "And if _you_ were half as smart as _you_ pretend to be, then you'd know that Roshi is naturally bald like most people his age. Kakarot is name you will address me by after I've pummeled you into the dirt; and as for my fighting ability, why don't you try me before shooting your mouth off kid, I may just surprise you."

By this point Krillin had regained his footing and was glaring hard at the other boy in front of him. A sneer was twisted around his lips, and the young monk bared his teeth in what he hoped was a fierce display as he spat out a response. "You're on _Carrot-head_ , I'll be happy to wipe that smug look off your stupid face and show you who most deserves to be Master Roshi's pupil."

Off to the side the elderly man in question had sat down on the steps of his home and watched the two boys with rapt attention. Where before he was about to break up their little barking show, the prospect of watching Kakarot against a fighter his own age easily grabbed the man's attention. He'd seen what the kid could do against a fighter as old as he, but now Roshi could be an outside observer and assess just how much potential the monkey-tailed boy had. It would also help him gauge Krillin in turn as well, and give him a starting point for their training as he was already fully set to take them both on as students.

When they turned to him, and Krillin asked permission for their spar, Roshi was all too happy to oblige.

 _ **xXx**_

Goku stared across the sand at his opponent, his dark obsidian eyes sharp with focus as he settled into his fighting stance with practiced ease. His muscles tensed just so, to allow for swift reaction without setting him too firm into one spot, and the boy's tail wrapped snug around his waist. Goku could see that this last action peeked Krillin's curiosity, and it got a smirk out of the alien boy as he remembered his superior breed. Krillin, while a possibly decent martial artists, did not have his other-worldly enhancements.

 _'Against a master like Roshi they don't count for much because of the difference in age and experience, but against this Krillin kid I should easily be able to claim victory.'_ Goku thought with a grin.

This confidence did not mean Goku was a fool however, so instead of charging in to aim for a quick victory, he called to his foe in an effort to provoke the bald youth. "Well, what are you waiting for Cue-ball, didn't you say something about showing Roshi who the better fighter was, why all the standing around?"

The taunt seemed to work perfectly, because Krillin's shiny head turned a deep, tomato-red before he rushed Goku.

Krillin had left out the fact that he'd been bullied heavily back at the temple during his introduction, and hearing Kakarot use one of the many names the older students had called him just nagged the thorn in the bald youth's side. Letting his vision tunnel so that all he saw was the wild-haired boy in front of him, Krillin pushed off his back foot and rushed Kakarot with a furious battle cry. Covering the short distance quickly, Krillin launched his fist out in a vicious strike. When that was deflected, he used the momentum to work himself into a spin-kick which he feinted and instead struck out with a harsh elbow. Watching Kakarot catch his attack only further fueled the young monk's ire, and after wrenching his joint from the other boy's grip Krillin tried for a headbutt.

Goku easily side-stepped this rash move before sliding his foot around and tripping up his furious opponent, right before delivering a powerful knee to Krillin's unprotected stomach.

But Krillin proved that his training really hadn't been in vane as he caught that knee with his hands, and used it as a spring to move out of his dangerous position. Retaliating with a combo of knife-hand strikes Krillin finally managed to draw enough of Kakarot's focus to where, when he fisted the shoulder and side of the boy's gi, he was left in enough shock that Krillin managed to land the first blow in the form of his own knee driving home in Kakarot's gut.

Unprepared for such a move Goku's natural resistance was left a little lacking, causing him to lose a breath as he felt that blow hit home, but this only fed his growing appetite for a decent fight as he gripped that leg in his young but powerful fingers and copied Krillin's early attempt at a headbutt. Only with his being successful. This sharp blow left the bald boy reeling, and open to a swift scissor-kick which landed square against the underside of his chin. But Goku wasn't finished yet, so he flipped himself backwards in the air before landing back on the sand, and then rearing back and launching a perfect palm-strike to Krillin's unprotected chest.

That blow felt as if a truck had just rammed into his young ribs, and left Krillin crying out in obvious pain as he was lifted off his feet and sent flying through the air. Yet the pre-pubescent monk managed still to fight through such agony and plant his palms against the sand before rolling into a crouch once he reworked his momentum. Taking a moment to catch a few raspy breaths, Krillin was soon launching himself back into the fight with a strong, over-head hammer-strike. When Kakarot stepped back to avoid it, Krillin just lashed out with a swift spartan-kick, which turned into a spin-kick after that first leg was trapped in Kakarot's grip again.

Goku dropped the offending appendage in his hands to throw up a forearm, effectively blocking his opponent's other leg as it aimed for his head. Even with his advanced strength and durability Goku could feel the force of that blow as it smacked against his skin, and he couldn't help the grin that found its way onto his lips at this realization. Krillin, while an obnoxious fool, was a worthy warrior that offered something Goku had not had in a long time...a true challenge. Gohan and Roshi were far beyond his current level, which made them nothing but obstacles he needed to overcome, while Yamcha and the Ox-King were both too unrefined to offer more than a warm-up. But Krillin, with his build nearly equal to Goku's own and obvious devotion to the art, allowed the boy with the monkey tail to truly test his skills against a foe who measured up to his speed and strength, and force him to push past his limits so as to gain even the slightest advantage.

It was _exhilarating_!

This new sense of splendor made itself known in the way Goku retaliated with his next move. The alien boy's arms moved just a fraction faster than before, as he reached up to grab Krillin's outstretched leg and haul him up into the air, where he then proceeded to bring him crashing down like if he'd been swinging a hammer. A spark lit Goku's eye though when he watched the other boy cushion the blow with his own forearms, and then shove his free leg out to try and catch Goku in the stomach. Deciding he wanted to have more fun, the wild-haired youth jumped back to avoid the blow instead of simply leaning out of the way.

On his end however, Krillin was _not_ having fun. As he worked his way back to his feet there was a burning anger that filled the pit of his stomach; he had trained at the Orin Temple for crying out loud, why was he having so much trouble with this loser!? The answer came as it always did, in the form of harsh memories and even harsher words that came from the lips of the other monks. Being the youngest, and as such the _shortest_ , member of the temple had only encouraged the older boys to bully him; his prodigious abilities meaning nothing to their superiority complex's. So as he stood, glaring at Kakarot who stood no more than a few feet in front of him, Krillin's vision blurred and the other boy was replaced with the image of one of his tormentors. Whatever taunt Kakarot had been saying, was now just a long-since memorized insult or barb against the bald boy's person.

This anger boiled hot, turning into a flurry of emotions that raged inside like a storm. Hurt, embarrassment, anger they all twisted and churned deep within. It was these emotions that powered the kick-off that launched Krillin forward at great speed, and fueled the power behind the punch he had ready to smash into Kakarot's face.

Goku could see this though, had even felt a niggling of danger when he noticed the change in his opponent, so he readied himself for whatever came next. It proved to be the right thing too, since Krillin's increase in speed had shocked him, and he just barely managed to duck away from the fist that came flying towards him. From there Goku found himself on the defensive, weaving and twisting away from whatever crazy move his foe tried to hit him with, with a few close calls that he was sure would have left bruises the following day if he didn't heal so fast. And yet, that grin from earlier had yet to slip from his face.

That feeling he'd gotten when battling Roshi, that _hunger_ for more, began to build within. There was that familiar, tingling rush that buzzed through the length of his tail and exploded out across his body as it reached his lower back. The flood of raw power that filled his veins, and pooled in his every pore, were now recognizable from his transformation but on a smaller and more controlled scale. Goku flexed his muscles, tensing them as he dodged another vicious punch from Krillin in preparation for a counter-attack. And when his obsidian eyes caught sight of an opening, he took it immediately.

Krillin didn't even see the punch coming, and felt the full power behind the sharp jab that so smoothly slid past his guard. The young fighter felt his neck muscles strain in agony as his head was snapped to the side by that swift, but powerful blow, and for a moment Krillin couldn't keep from being stunned.

This moment though was more than enough for Goku, who pressed his attack the second he saw this, as he unleashed a furious whirlwind of fists and feet in one seemingly endless combination. A vicious elbow to the throat, a palm-strike to the shoulder that lead to a hammer-strike to the back as Krillin doubled over, and a knee to the stomach as the bald boy looked about to crumple that went on to become another string of blows. This showcase of precision and speed was brought to an end however by Roshi, whose voice filled the air as he pulled Goku back and away from Krillin.

"I said that's _enough_ , Kakarot!" The elderly martial arts master hollered at the boy in his grip, only to throw up his staff so as to block the blur of a punch that the kid threw out of instinct. "What in the world got into back there kid, you almost killed Krillin; and wipe that smile off your face, this isn't funny!"

Goku hadn't even known he _was_ smiling until one look at Krillin had the look dropping like a stone from off his face. The bald boy was covered in swelling bruises, many of them a deep, ugly purple color that would no doubt take days to heal. There was even blood dripping from where Goku had hit him in the nose. Krillin's body was obviously spent as well, because in no time after Goku's pummeling was cut short the other boy dropped first to his knees and then finally face-first into the sand.

Roshi finally let go of Kakarot's gi collar, and spat at him while going over to pick up his other pupil. "I don't know what that was, Kakarot, but I suggest you get it under control because if you don't...you can forget about learning any martial arts from me."

With that, the elderly man went inside with Krillin in his arms, leaving Goku to stand alone on the beach. The spiky-haired little warrior stared, wide-eyed and unbelieving at his blood-stained hands; it wasn't much more than splats of crimson, but to him they may as well have been drenched in the stuff. This had been the first time, while still conscious of himself, that Goku could recall losing control like that. Because it wasn't the bloodshed that bothered him, but the manner in which he'd done it...the way he'd _relished_ in it.

Never before had Goku experienced this part of his hunger before, this need for more, because he most certainly did want more. More opponents to fight, more victory to soak up, more _blood_ to be spilled. These wants each merged with the other, creating something new, something powerful...something dangerous. It, whatever it was, was a dark and cold surge that still thrummed deep within Goku's core to the point that even his tail found itself hackling under the remnants of such a feeling.

 _'A feeling that, judging from Roshi's words, isn't normal.'_ Goku thought with a grimace. That meant it had something to do with whatever type of alien he was, which meant he was stuck figuring it out for himself, and that in turn only made Goku even more angry.

 _Why_ was he alone?

 _Why_ hadn't anyone come to find him yet?

And the thing that kept him up the most; what _was_ he?

These questions ate away at young Goku as he continued to stand there on the small beach of Roshi's island. They swirled around inside his head like a tornado and kept his mind in a constant state of confusion and disarray, as he continued to stare down at his red-speckled hands. And truth be told, he may have stood there all into the night if that ruddy red color hadn't sparked a memory in his brain. One of a bloody bandanna, worn by a man with a scar on his cheek.

Calling to the nimbus Goku felt his chest throb with how heavy his heart was beating beneath his ribs. Why hadn't he thought of it before, it seemed so obvious now, where he might find some answers. His _space-pod_ ; surely there was a message left behind for him by his father?! It felt a little like a long shot for Goku, but he'd gone so long without answers, and this thought was the only one he could use to keep himself from breaking apart at the seams at the moment.

Relief flooded Goku's being when his reliable yellow cloud screeched to a halt in front of him, but that was replaced with dread when he went to board the ball of fluff and he _fell through_ onto his butt! Staring up at the hovering nimbus with shocked eyes, Goku could only think back to what he'd just done to Krillin. Roshi had mentioned that, in order to even ride the cloud, one had to be pure of heart; something he, apparently, could no longer claim after his animalistic beating of Krillin.

Standing back on his feet Goku eyed the nimbus with an imploring gaze. "I've got a pretty good guess why that just happened, but that's also what I called you for. I'm want to return to my ship, the one that brought me to earth and see if I can't find a message left behind for me somewhere inside of it. Maybe, if I do, it'll help explain what happened during my spar with Krillin, but I can only get there if you help me. So...what do you say?"

It was a tense silence that followed, one where Goku believed the nimbus would spurn him and simply fly away, but then the cloud dipped low in an offer to let him ride and the young alien felt that there was still hope for their partnership yet.

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: T here's chapter six. Krillin is here, and now Goku's experiencing the true depths of his battle lust. The question is; will he find what he's looking for at his pod? Will there be a message from Bardock, or will Goku be stuck trying to figure out this strange and dangerous new feeling on his own?**_

 _ **Okay so, what did you guys think about this chapter for real though? Please let me know and I hope everyone will be interested in the next chapter as well. Just a note for thought though, I won't be going into any real detail about the actual training he does under Roshi since the methods will be the same as you see in the show. So, after next chapter I'll be starting the Tournament arc.**_


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: Hey, I just wanted to put this here to explain a couple of things, mostly one specific question but I'll try to answer a second too.**_

 _ **Anyway, I was asked about how everyone knew what an Oozaru was. Well, when I mentioned the term two chapters ago and again at the beginning of last chapter I didn't mean it in the Saiyan transformation way. When I used the moniker I meant it like Shenron's title of Eternal Dragon; the Oozaru is a legend, spoken of through stories and never really seen but by a small handful. Goku transformed at least twice while under Gohan's care, the last time being when he crushed him, so in my mind Goku would have wandered the mountains while in his transformed state and encountered other mountain villagers. This would spawn the legend, thus why Mai and Pilaf knew about it.**_

 _ **The second question was about the moon, and how I had Shenron blow it up. Now you have to remember, Roshi blew up the moon during his match with Goku during the Tournament and yet there's never any mention of consequences in terms of environmental effects. No, that technically makes no sense because of what we know scientifically about the moon, but in a world where the dragon balls exist and they can simply wish the moon back into existence a year later do you really think they were worried about what the aftermath would be?**_

 _ **Anyway, those were the two big questions I wanted to answer here for you guys. I know this chapter is shorter than the others I've done, but I plan to make the next one another of decent length since we'll be getting into the tournament saga. So, please enjoy this chapter, and look forward to the next one coming.**_

 _ **Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch. 7- Standing alone, but standing tall.**_

 _ **Xxx**_

Crystal-blue eyes stared ahead at the board in obvious disinterest; the formulas and equations etched in white chalk were things she'd already mastered by the age of nine. However Bulma held back her sigh of aggravation by reminding herself that, in just a few more weeks, she'd finally graduate and be finished with such boring lectures.

 _'And on my way to watch the World Tournament.'_ She thought with a grin, before turning another page in her textbook. Her thoughts had wandered though, from numbers and decimals, to images of her friend holding up the championship belt with that self-assured smirk the girl knew he'd wear. Because Bulma had no doubt in her mind, Goku would most definitely dominate everyone he was up against; even Yamcha. That bit of thought had the beautiful genius recalling the handful of dates she'd been on with the former desert bandit. True to her word Bulma had given actual thought to what it could be like to be taken out by Yamcha, and upon his arrival to her home simply shrugged her shoulders in agreeance since the boy had honestly cleaned up before coming.

Apparently, the long-haired teen had stored quite a bit of money away during his stint as a thief. And while Bulma certainly didn't condone stealing, she allowed Yamcha to pay for their outings with _his_ stolen money on the concession that he give up being a bandit. Even now, it made Bulma roll her bright eyes at how eagerly the boy was to comply.

The pair hadn't seen much of each other in the last few weeks however, because Bulma knew her final exams were approaching and she had no intention of risking a single grade point for Yamcha or his over zealous interest in her lips. Sighing again she let her hand come up to cup her soft cheek and think back to that single kiss she'd given the nervous boy after their third outing. And while it had in no way been her first kiss, Bulma was pretty sure it would be the last one she would share with Yamcha. The boy had showed a clear lack of practice, and while that could be put aside and even admired, the fact that Bulma felt no _warmth_ could not. It had been just as plain, and uninspiring as all the other kisses she'd given to boys who attempted to catch her eye.

 _'At least, with me here at class, and him off training for the tournament I don't have to worry about it too much. Besides, I can always just cut him loose when I see him again, so I guess it's no big deal.'_

With that thought, and another sigh of boredom, Bulma finally turned her mind back to the notebook in front of her that she was using to copy questions in, and worked on the multitude of math problems set before her.

While this was going on, out in the wilderness of the Asian continent Yamcha was indeed training for the upcoming tournament. The teen's long, shaggy hair had swiftly lost whatever sheen it held during his dates with Bulma, and since returned to the gnarled, unruly mess it had been during his bandit days. His once clean skin was once again coated in a fine layer of dirt and grime, one that streaked from the sweat trickling out of his pores as Yamcha punched and kicked his way through the jungles. Long gone were the crisp collard shirt and khaki slacks he'd dressed in to take Bulma out with, and in their place stood Yamcha's tried-and-true orange-and-green uniform of old.

Yes, gone was the nervous wreck that was infatuated with Bulma Briefs. In his place Yamcha of the Diablo Desert moved in his place, sword drawn and swinging at everything that his mind conjured to look like Kakarot.

Teeth grit and a sneer twisted at Yamcha's lips as he twisted and leaped through the trees. His muscles ached terribly and hid breathing came in labored gasps, and yet the teen still didn't quite. Instead Yamcha pushed his body to move faster, to swing harder as he cut down an endless number of thick branches from their tree. His fury blinded him to where Yamcha's boot slipped during his next landing, however this did nothing to stop the teen's momentum as he crashed to the forest floor and worked into a roll that planted the former bandit back on his feet so he could twist into a powerful spin-kick.

That kick was followed by a vicious stab with Yamcha's sword, the blade burying itself up to the hilt as it pierced the thick hide of an age-old tree. The dense wood made it difficult for Yamcha to retrieve his sword then, so with a growl the young teen decided he would give it a rest for a moment and plopped down into a cross-legged position with a huff. The light of the sun filtered through gaps in the canopy of trees, speckling the forest with rays like a spotlight, while the heat layered on like a blanket. Winter had come and gone, the snow long since melted, and now spring was in full effect.

 _'And yet I still spent Valentine's Day alone,'_ Yamcha thought with a grumble. Sure, he'd started training around that time, but the young teen still thought he and Bulma would each take time off from their respective personal affairs to share in the holiday of love. Unfortunately for the shaggy-haired youth, when he voiced the idea he was immediately shot down, Bulma siting her refusal to the fact she had an important test the following day and would prefer to spend her time studying for it. And, if he were being truly honest with himself, it wasn't this that encored Yamcha's bad mood. No, that title was given to his date's short, freaky friend.

 _'Kakarot!,'_ The former bandit hissed mentally. Bulma may never have brought the monkey-tailed boy up during their dates but Yamcha could see from the distracted look in her eyes that she often thought about him, and while he _knew_ it was ridiculous to be jealous of someone so much younger Yamcha found he was powerless to stamp it out. It just irked him, knowing that a beautiful girl like Bulma found more interest and fun in a _boy_ rather than a man like him.

 _'I mean sure, I don't exactly live in the best apartment, all my money I've stolen from others, and I quite school to become a professional thief, but that doesn't mean I can't change.'_ Yamcha sniffed indignantly. Anger swelling in his chest, the former bandit worked himself into another series of kicks and punches as he continued to stew about his failing romantic pursuit.

 _'I'll show her,'_ Yamcha swore internally as he began his signature technique. _'I'll win the World Tournament, get that prize money, and show Bulma that I'm more than enough man for her. So you better watch out Kakarot; because I'm coming for **you**!'_

 _ **xXx**_

What neither Bulma, nor Yamcha knew was that the object of their thoughts wasn't even remotely thinking about either of them. In fact, Goku wasn't thinking about anything at that current moment. Instead the young alien was settled atop the roof of Roshi's pink house, in the lotus position, and meditating in an effort to unlock the mysteries of his own mind.

It had been months since he'd arrived there and began learning under the Turtle Hermit; months since his frightening experience of 'battle lust', as he'd come to call it. Against his wishes, memories of that day began to filter in and litter his mind. Goku remembered the uneasy feeling he'd had after Roshi'd pulled him away from Krillin, the knot that had formed in the pit of his stomach at the sight of the blood that oozed from the other boys nose, as well as the desire he had to see _more_. Then there was his trip with the Nimbus.

It had taken some time, but Goku finally arrived at where he'd left his ship behind and dismounted the fluffy yellow cloud with a graceful leap.

The meditating youth recalled the nervous energy that coursed through his body that day, and how it made his very skin itch. He could see, in his mind's eye, the smooth, round pod that he'd arrived on Earth in. It was caked in dirt, and the once pristine white coloring had faded to a dull sort of yellow-gray with age, but it was intact. Goku's memory brought that same trepidation he'd felt then to the forefront of his mind for the umpteenth time, and just like that day, Goku felt a shiver run down his spine and shoot to the end of his tail.

Now that the memory was playing it wouldn't stop, and the young alien boy watched much the same as with his transformation recall, as his body took tentative steps toward the space-pod. The normally confident martial artist had been filled with anxious energy as his thoughts scattered in an uneven mess. Goku recalled the flickering embers of hope that filled his chest, and grew into a small flame with every inch closer that he drew to the ship. The hatch was left open which had allowed Goku to peer inside, and he took in the tattered, molded remains of a cushioned seat. Moving closer, the young alien could clearly make out the robotic tune of that same message he'd heard when he came to the ship with Bulma.

" _ **Wake up Kakarot; destroy all lifeforms."**_ It was a continuous recording, and young Goku had to do his best to block it out so as not to risk falling into the same dangerous trance as before. His feet shuffled inch by inch until finally, the monkey-tailed martial artist stood directly in front of his space-pod. There was a stench that wafted through the air as a light breeze swept the area, and it made Goku wrinkle his nose as his superior senses easily picked up on the odor. Although, the boy wasn't totally surprised considering just how long the spacecraft's hatch had been open for, and his quest for answers was far more important than his burning nostrils.

Back in the present mind Goku opened his eyes, canceling out his meditative state and shattering the memory like glass as he remembered just what it was he'd found inside the pod.

Nothing.

There was no message, no recording, only the eerie monotone of the woman telling him that his job was to destroy every last living thing on planet Earth. Letting a sigh pass through his lips, Goku stood from his seated position and let his onyx orbs sweep over the vast ocean laid out before him. The salty sea air replaced the reminiscent scent of moist mildew, and the warmth from the sun bathed Goku in a wash of fresh energy as its rays lapped away at his skin. These things helped balm the wound that pricked at the boy's heart, the sharp sting echoing with the pain of truth.

He was alone. There was no one coming to find him, no one out there who probably even knew his _name_. And, that knowledge...hurt. Because it meant that there was no one to explain away any of the confusion, the questions that seemed to just keep piling up with every day that went by. There was no one who was going to help him learn to control his full-moon transformation, or the battle-lust that seemed to be growing stronger with every spar he had with Krillin. There was no one, only Goku... _'Only_ _Kakarot,_ he thought to himself with a shake of his head. And he would have to do everything himself.

 _'Like a true warrior,'_ the young alien thought with a firm set to his brow. Then, the sound of Roshi's door opening drew his attention and Goku looked down to find the elderly man walking out alongside Krillin; the young monk having long ago changed from his robes to a sleeveless white shirt, and yellow pants for spars. Realizing what was coming, the wild-haired youth leaped from the roof and with an aerial flip landed perfectly in front of both of them.

"I assume it's time for our spar?" Goku questioned with a raised brow.

"Actually, no." Roshi answered with a tone. He had remained wary of the boy before him ever since the 'incident'. "There isn't much time left before the tournament and I want to see how each of you does against _me_. Many of the fighters that you'll be up against will be veterans of the _Tenkaichi Budokai_ , which means that they've been practicing for years rather than months. To make sure you're both ready I want to see if each of you can land a hit on me; just one, and that'll prove you're both capable of handling the competition to come. What do you say?"

Goku's answer was to scoff. "If you even feel the need to ask me, then you haven't been paying attention to who you're dealing with old man."

Krillin's answer was much more respectful, and while he glared at Kakarot, he bowed as he spoke. "I thank you for this opportunity Master, and I'll do my best to not disappoint you."

From there it was decided that the bald little monk would test first. Goku scoffed at the obvious favoritism being shown, but relented none the less and stepped back to sit on the steps to watch. The young martial arts student then let his eyes narrow in focus, so as to better keep track of the match. Krillin had gotten considerably faster during their months of training, and Goku now had to make an effort to follow the other boy when he moved.

The match wasn't quick, but neither did it take long for Krillin to score his single hit on Roshi. The bald youth surprised the elderly hermit with a fairly advanced combination of grappling and flips that ended with a knee spiking straight into the martial arts master's stomach. However, throughout the duration of the spar Goku couldn't help but be impressed with just how far along his fellow student had come while using Roshi's odd training methods.

Memories of delivering milk crates on foot, swimming to escape the jaws of a giant fish, and dodging bees while tied to a tree trunk flashed through Goku's mind as he watched Krillin duck a dodge the swift strikes being thrown his way. It truly astounded the young alien to see just how far the little bald monk had come from simply repeating such ridiculous tasks. But then, that begged the question, just how strong had Goku himself gotten, since he had decided to include a solo regimen to go along with Roshi's own teachings?

It's true, when the first day of 'training' was over and Goku had been left wanting more, the young boy with the monkey tail decided later that night that some personal practice time was needed if he was going to hope to stand a chance in the World Tournament. From there, the wild-haired youth spent the next few nights constructing his own routine before finally taking Nimbus and rocketing off to begin his _real_ training.

With it Goku took Roshi's weighted turtle shell method and enhanced upon it; tying small boulders to his wrists and ankles as he went through kata. He also decided to play around with the very style Gohan had been teaching him, and since the old man never got around to teaching Goku the entire set of forms, he worked to create his own in order to fill in those gaps. Then he battled against nature itself, struggling to climb steep cliff sides and even roaring waterfalls while weighing himself down with both the turtle shell as well as the makeshift weights. There were more than enough failed attempts that, once he'd finally completed both exercises, Goku was _certain_ he had to have gotten much stronger than when he started.

But Goku didn't just train his body, no the young boy also took it upon himself to embrace the practice of meditation on a level that far surpassed what he'd been taught. The lack of a message left behind in his space-pod fueled the boy's desire to better harness the power he so obviously had lying dormant within himself.

So when he wasn't training, the boy with the monkey tail used whatever time he wasn't eating to sit atop Kame house and delve into the depths of his mind. It was a difficult task, diving to such unknowns wells of the mind, but after two months of heavy meditation practice Goku finally managed to dip his fingers into the murky waters of his latent potential. However, that first taste of power was almost overwhelming, and Goku was forced to fight off the incoming loss of control that came with interacting with what he guessed to be his inner animal; the Oozaru.

Since then Goku had backed off from _that_ level of concentration, and steered his meditating towards growing the flame that already burned in his chest. Focusing on his current power, and stoking it through both physical and mental exercise, proved to be exceptionally effective and now with only a few short weeks to go before the tournament Goku found that his campfire had grown into an inferno matching that of Fire Mountain.

Deep in thought though, Goku didn't realize that his name was being called until a shadow cast over him and blocked out the sun. Blinking, but in a way that didn't give off that he'd been caught off-guard, the young boy peered up to see Roshi standing over him. "So I guess this means that it's my turn?"

"That's right, and I'll be giving you the same restrictions as Krillin; no energy beams. Other than that, all I have to say is for you to get into position Kakarot, so that we can begin." Roshi explained.

Goku simply nodded his head and, after hauling himself to his feet, walked over to his side of the beach before settling into his opening stance. His sharp, coal-like eyes watched diligently as Roshi did the same, although a spur of annoyance stuck in his side at seeing the elderly man do no more than lift his staff in a feeble defense.

 _'Arrogant old lecher, he has no idea what he's up against, I'm nothing like the boy he fought when we first met.'_ Goku scoffed internally. Without his weighted gear the boy felt lighter than air, and moving without giving away his speed was a difficult task, but young Goku managed to do it as he tensed his muscles in preparation for an attack. However, instead of sprinting forward to make the first move Goku was forced to doge away from an incoming jab made by Roshi's staff. From there he ducked a spin-kick to the head, and managed to retaliate with a firm, rising palm to the old man's knee.

Roshi managed to snap his leg back just fast enough to avoid the blow however, so Goku was left to block his counter-attack with his forearm. It was here that the monkey-tailed martial artist got another surprise—the attack barely even phased him. Sure, there was the initial pain of impact as Roshi's knuckles smacked against his muscles, but after that it was as if Goku had just gotten a slap on the wrist! This shock cost the boy though, because it left him open and his elderly opponent took full advantage of this to land a sweep-kick, and follow it up by spinning and driving his knee into Goku's stomach.

With his mind focus snapped back to the spar Goku managed to catch himself as his feet left the ground, and tense his body. Landing only a few feet back instead of halfway across the small island, Goku was ready for his opponent's attempt to regain his advantage; this only made the boy smile. With his blood starting to heat up, and the possibility that he may actually be closing the gap between himself and the old man, Goku's eyes sharpened and he found it a little easier to dodge Roshi's next strike. Ducking and weaving around a flurry of punches and staff strikes Goku's smirk stretched across his whole face to become a full-blown smile of excitement.

As he jumped over Roshi's second try at a sweep-kick the younger fighter flipped over the elderly hermit's deceptively thin frame, and used his tail to actually snatch Roshi's staff from his hand. Landing deftly on his feet, the monkey-tailed boy whipped the furry appendage around behind him...and managed to whack the surprised Roshi with his own weapon in the back of the head.

Reigning in his heated desire to continue fighting Goku unwound his tail from around the wooden instrument he'd used to achieve victory, and curled the furry psudo-limb back around his waist. Turning, the boy stared at his downed foe, and watched as Roshi stood silently to his feet. There was a weight in Goku's stomach at this point, as he eagerly awaited the announcement that he was indeed ready for the World Tournament. He was not disappointed.

"That was very good Kakarot; you managed to strike me faster than Krillin, and he did exceptionally in his own right. However, as I'm sure you know, I wasn't using my full power so I don't want this going to your head; do you understand?"

Goku simply gave a firm nod as he answered. "I do, and I thank you for your training...Master. I hope I can put your teachings to good use, and be successful when the time comes for the tournament."

Roshi's eyes widened under his sunglasses, but he managed to keep the surprise off his face as he reached down to pick up his fallen staff. In all the time he'd known the young boy known as Kakarot, the kid had never once called him by his proper title. So to hear it now, so suddenly after these many long months, almost caused the Turtle Hermit to stumble. But it also made him more certain about his decision to keep the truth from the monkey-tailed martial artist.

Kakarot hadn't just done well, he'd landed a hit faster than any other student Roshi had ever had, and even faster than he himself had landed one on his _own_ master; Mutaito.

Watching the two boys agree to spar, and then looking on as they traded blows, Roshi couldn't help but marvel at the raw potential he could see coming off Kakarot in waves. Yes, the mountain boy with the monkey tail would surely become a great warrior one day, and all the elderly master could hope was that Kakarot didn't give in to whatever that frightening inner beast had reared its head the first day of training. He didn't want to think about what would happen if he had to use _that_ technique on Kakarot.

The last few weeks before the tournament passed in a quick whirlwind for Goku, and before he knew it, it was the big day. The last twenty days had been spent with rigorous, last minute training before using the final night to eat a hefty meal and get the first real good nights sleep since he'd arrived. Upon waking the spiky-haired alien felt rejuvenated on a whole new level, his body feeling almost brand new, as if it had readied itself in the night to take on the challenge ahead. Whatever the case though, Goku was sure of one thing: this tournament was only the beginning. He would come away from it, champion or not, and continue to push his limits to the brink and break pat them. It was an internal drive, one he'd had for as far back as he could remember, and one that he didn't dare ignore.

Which is why, at noon when the sun was centered in the sky, Goku stood beside Krillin as Roshi activated a capsule. When the colorful smoke finally dissipated the boys were left staring at the elderly man's personal airplane.

"We'll take this over to West City, and meet up with Bulma before heading to Papaya Island. She called the night before while you two were sleeping to set it up; we'll be traveling in _style_ she says. Apparently she's got you each a new suit to wear when we go to get you signed up, says she doesn't want to show up standing next to a bunch of 'meatheads'."

"You mean Bulma Briefs?" Krillin goggled with awe. "H-How do you know _her_ , Master?"

"I don't," Roshi sighed in defeat. "Kakarot does; they're friends. I'm sure this is her way of supporting him for the tournament to come. So you better be grateful you punk, it's not every day you get a beautiful girl to shell out the red carpet for you." He finished with a stern, but obviously jealous, look in said monkey boy's direction.

However Goku wasn't paying attention to any of that. Instead he was left thinking about his only friend, and how after so long he'd get to see her again. Without realizing, a small smile played at the corner of Goku's lip as he went to get on Roshi's little plane.

 _ **xXx**_

What none of them knew though, was that deep in bowls of his secondary headquarters, Pilaf was seated on a poorly replicated throne with a thick, leather-bound book in his lap. Kneeling before him were his last two remaining followers; the others having either been killed or deserted him. Mai and Shu each had their faces angled toward the tiled floor, sweat building on their foreheads while the hair on the back of their necks stood on edge.

For Shu, it was much more noticeable though, what with him being an anthro-dog.

In fact, the anxiety became so bad that the talking animal _had_ to say something to break the heavy silence. "E-Excuse me Sire, b-but are you _sure_ this is a good idea? I just mean, you don't know how the demon will react once awakened, s-so should you really be trying to release him?"

Pilaf only peered up from the tome in his lap enough to look his subordinate in the eye, but the fury burning in his beady eyes was more than easy to see, and it caused poor Shu to tuck his tail in between his legs. Mai took note of this and attempted to rectify her fellow soldier's unknown mistake.

"What I think Shu means Sire, is that this so-called Demon King may be a bit...rambunctious, and without your men we are simply curious to know how your eminence intends to keep the thing in line." The former commander attempted to stoke the little imp's ego, knowing it was one of the creatures biggest weaknesses. Sometimes though, Pilaf caught on and punished her for it; thankfully this was not one of them.

"Well that's really quiet simple Mai," Pilaf scoffed as if to make it seem like the answer was obvious. "I'll simply use the threat of having him sealed away again to keep this old goblin in line; surely anyone who allows themselves to be trapped inside a _rice cooker_ for hundreds of years couldn't possibly be that dangerous."

Yet while Pilaf chuckled in mocking humor, staring down at the page displaying that very rice cooker, his two followers looked to each other with great worry. Something told them that the stories they'd heard about the great Demon King Piccolo were every bit at true as the legends say, and Pilaf would find himself in over his head with attempting to control the ferocious scourge.

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Well, it's shorter than normal, but I'm hoping to make the tournament chapter a decent enough length to make up for it. Anyway, for what there is of this chapter, what did you guys think of it?**_

 _ **I went a little back and forth about leaving something in the pod for Goku, but ultimately decided that such a thing would take away from his personal journey in the long term, so I left him nothing.**_

 _ **King Piccolo's arc is in fact being set up this early, yes, but that doesn't mean I'll be skipping any of the other major ones. After the tournament Goku will face the Red-Ribbon Army, and then meet Tien and all that before finally coming face to face with King Picollo, I just wanted to set the stage a little early. Also because I feel it would take Pilaf some time to get his hands on the rice cooker that the Demon King was trapped in.**_

 _ **Speaking of Pilaf; he' not broke, or without resources, it's just that the soldiers he'd hired have either died under Goku's Great Ape transformation or defected out of fear for their lives.**_

 _ **Um...I touched on the relationship between Bulma and Yamcha here, explaining what their time before the tournament was like and the beginning of what we all already know is a rocky relationship. Yamcha hasn't given up on Bulma yet, and Bulma just isn't sure if Yamcha is really what she wants. Sometimes persistence, in the right degree, pays off though so we'll see what happens with that.**_

 _ **Speaking of females, I plan on making another introduction during the tournament chapter that will actually be how I personally introduce the Muscle Tower arc of the Red-Ribbon saga. It'll make some things a bit different of course, but I hope you all enjoy it when I get it posted.**_

 _ **Anyway, I think that's about it. So let me know what you thought of this chapter, and I hope you all look forward to the World Tournament next chapter.**_


	8. Chapter 8

_**Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch. 8- Beyond the mountains and the trees; The World Tournament Begins!**_

 _ **xXx**_

Onyx-black eyes looked down at the city lights as the small plane he was seated in flew over the expanse of West City. He, Krillin, and Roshi hadn't been in the air for long and yet already they were only minutes away from their destination. And yet, during the plane ride Goku couldn't help the niggling twinge of excitement that had settled in his stomach; whether it was from the thought of participating in the tournament, or seeing Bulma again after so many months, he wasn't sure.

And this caused the young martial artist to enter into a curious haze while he watched the world pass below him, because never before had the boy with a monkey tail experienced such intrigue before. Granted, the only other human Goku had spent any extensive time with had been Gohan, but even back then the spiky-haired youth could not recall any feelings of... _eager_ , at the mere thought of seeing the elderly man again. Nor had this feeling shown itself when he set out to return to Roshi for training.

But then Goku recalled that morning, before they ventured out into the Diablo desert, and his words with the blue-haired human girl. Was this what it meant to have a friend? Did the feeling of friendship manifest itself in the form of premature excitement at just the thought of seeing someone again after so long apart?

 _'Maybe I'll ask Bulma when I see her,'_ Goku thought to himself, mind still in a numb sort of fog. That feeling gave way however under the sensation of the boy's stomach dropping, which caused Goku to shake out of his trance and snap his coal-like eyes into an intense focus. "What's going on, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong Kakarot, we're just landing." Krillin answered from the seat beside the wired youth. "I forgot you've never even been on a plane before, or I'd have warned you about the funny feeling you get as it come out of the sky."

Hearing his fellow student speak Goku unwound his coiled muscles, and instead sat back in the cushioned seat while letting out the breath he'd sucked in moments ago. Once he was settled into a more neutral state the young alien turned his sharp eyes to the bald boy beside him and asked, "So we've arrived then, at Bulma's?"

"That's right Kakarot," Roshi called from the cockpit. "And if you look out the window you'll see her house; maybe then you'll understand why Krillin was so shocked to know you two were friends."

Goku did as he was asked and let his eyes roll down to better see out the shield of, what Roshi had informed him, was plexiglass. Once he did however, the young fighter from space couldn't help but raise his dark eyebrows raise in interest; Bulma's home was nearly as impressive as that of the Ox King.

The dome-like building, while maybe not as big, was still enormous and covered a great expanse of land from what Goku could see. Its pastel-yellow paint was accented perfectly with rich, blue tinted windows that dotted all across the round building. The lawn that surrounded it was also a sight, with a carefully mowed lawn that shone a brilliant and healthy green while being edged by a fence of hedges and palm trees. Goku could only wonder, as he took in the splendor of 'Capsule Corp.', whose name was printed on the front of the building; perhaps his friend was even more important than he'd originally thought?

It was as he thought this that Goku's enhanced vision caught sight of a pair of bodies exiting the rear of the building, and moving close to where the boy could tell the plane would be landing. And while his young eyes couldn't make out every single detail, they were still good enough to let Goku know that neither of the human shapes were Bulma. Her parents perhaps; the girl had mentioned her family once or twice before during their adventure. Whatever the case, Goku decided it would be best to be at least polite to them seeing as he was a guest at the blue-haired girl's home.

It didn't take too much longer for the flying machine to finally, fully touch down on the ground, and when it did Goku was quick to free himself of the safety belt around his lap and exit the craft. Because while he didn't mind flying on Nimbus, there was something far too...impersonal and cold about riding in an airplane. However only moments after his feet hit the grass, the poor boy's ears were hit with a high-pitched voice the likes of which he'd never experienced before.

"Oh my, look dear, that must be little Goku." The shrill voice came from the blonde woman Goku had spotted from the air. She was dressed in a royal-blue, off-shoulder dress and had eyes of a darker shade than Bulma's, which were crinkled due to her current state of excitement. Beside her Goku saw a short, stout man with a thick mustache and lavender hair, he was dressed in a lab coat and slacks with a comfortable shirt underneath.

Hearing that these two strangers knew his name, Goku stepped forward and addressed them with a swift, but deep bow. "I am, yes, and would it be right to assume the two of you are Bulma's parents? If so, then it's nice to meet you both."

The man Goku presumed to be his friend's father stepped closer and introduced himself. "You assume correct young man; I am Dr. Briefs, and this is my wife Panchy. Our daughter told us about how you prefer the name Kakarot, so I hope you'll excuse her mother's slip of the tongue, with how highly Bulma speaks of you Panchy has just been very excited to meet you."

Goku only flickered his eyes from one human to the other before opening his mouth to speak again, however he was cut off by the sound Roshi returning the small plane to its capsule form. The colorful smoke created a momentarily thick fog that wafted under Goku's nose, filling the boys olfactory sense with the acrid scent of mass production. The monkey-tailed warrior from space turned his attention from Bulma's parents, and watched as his companions waded their way through the quickly thinning haze and into the line of sight.

"Oh, did you bring friends Kakarot? I'd forgotten Bulma mentioned there'd be two more with you." Panchy exclaimed with a bubbly tone. The blonde woman lifted her own gaze, and turned it from the small boy over to the two new faces in her yard.

"The short one calls himself Krillin," Goku introduced. "He has been training alongside me under this man, Roshi, for the World Tournament that is to begin tomorrow." It was here the boy made a face, trying to think up a way to say his next words politely, only to be cut across a second time...only this time by a voice he recognized.

"And I'm not sure about the little cue-ball, but last I remember Goku and Roshi were _not_ friends."

There was a laugh that mingled with those words, a soft melody Goku hadn't heard in a long time that he hadn't realized he'd missed until hearing it that moment. When he turned to find the source his movements weren't swift, nor jerky, the mountain boy managed to keep his control as he swiveled his head to look over at Bulma; who had seemingly just exited the building and made her way over.

Right away Goku could see that his friend was different. Bulma's turquoise hair, which had been in a ponytail the last time he'd seen it was now swept up into a bun, with several glistening strands left to whisk gently in the coming breeze. Aside from this were her clothes. Goku had already assumed she wouldn't be dressed in the same clothes he'd last seen her in, but also hadn't expected her to be wearing the belly exposing t-shirt and tight, powder-blue sweatpants that adorned her body presently. However, ever the observant, Goku quickly noticed that it wasn't just Bulma's hair that shone with a glistening sparkle. The older girls whole body, or at least the bits of it Goku could see, radiated this glow.

This sparked a memory for the young boy, one from the earliest days of his and Bulma's journey together. "Did you just get out of the bath Bulma? Our arrival didn't interrupt you, did it?"

The teenage girl in question's response came with a hand resting on her jutting hip and a roll of her crystal-blue eyes. "Leave it to you to ignore all the normal greeting rules, and make up your own." Then Bulma's lips lifted into a soft smile as she leveled her eyes with Goku's. "But yes, I was in the shower Goku, and no you did not interrupt; I told my parents to let me know when you got here. Now come on, we can talk more inside, and I can finally give you a tour of the place since _somebody_ never came by to visit."

Goku was easily able to tell, from the way the girl looked at him, that Bulma was talking about her invitation from the day after escaping Pilaf's castle. In response the boy simply rolled his own eyes and crossed his arms behind his wild head of hair. "I seem to remember a certain other someone mentioning that they'd be busy going to something called 'school', so I thought it would be best if I left you to focus on that, while I finished my training."

At first Bulma's response was to stick out her tongue, but then her brain caught something the boy had said and she asked, "Wait you _finished_ your training? So, what, are you stronger than the old perv now Goku?"

"Of course he's not," Roshi cut in. The elderly martial artist saddled up beside his student and cuffed the boy in the head with his staff, then, as he ignored the raven-haired youngster's squawk of outrage he turned his covered eyes to Bulma. "This little baboon still has a long way to go before he's ready to even _think_ he can handle me at my full power."

By this time the group had passed through the atrium, where Krillin had been silent because he was gawking at the variety of wild animals that seemed to inhabit the first floor as if it were a private zoo, and had made their way into the more familiar territory of the living quarters on the second floor. Bulma lead her guests into the living room and, after sending a robot to retrieve some refreshments, motioned for the trio to sit. Her parents had split off on the first floor, saying they'd come back around to meet Goku when she was finished catching up.

Settling herself into one of the plush lounge chairs her family owned, Bulma let her eyes settled back on her friend and the noticeable difference in his own appearance. At what she assumed was only thirteen Goku still managed to look dangerous with the way his body seemed to always keep itself in a ready position, the muscles moving under his skin never fully unwinding and his specific way of sitting, as if believing that a fight could break out at any moment. The firm set to his jaw, and the way his brow was always a little knitted together also seemed to add to the illusion that Goku was older than he really was.

"Despite what Roshi says you've definitely gotten stronger Goku, I can see it just by looking at you, and you've grown in other ways too; last I remember you would have sucker-punched anyone who called you anything even close to a 'baboon'."

The teasing tone in her voice did not go unnoticed by the boy in question, as shown by the way his shoulder twitched at the barb, but Goku still managed to keep his temper in check as he responded. "Normally yes, I would, but I am a guest in your home Bulma and I was taught that behaving rudely in someone else home when you are invited is incorrect behavior...so I'll simply wait until we get to Papaya Island before I hit the old fool."

Hearing this caused Bulma to giggle mirthfully behind her hand before accepting the drink her robotic servant extended to her. Calming down enough to take a sip, the blue-haired beauty then turned her attention to the bald youth seated beside her friend. "And what about you, I didn't really get the chance to catch your name."

"I-I...M-My name is Krillin, and I came a-all the way from Orin Temple to train under Master Roshi in preparation for the Tenkaichi Budokai. It's very n-nice to meet you Ms. Bulma, and I'm honored that you'd allow us to stay in your home tonight."

"It's my pleasure Krillin; anything to help Goku feel ready for the tournament. I know you'll both be competing, but I've grown close to Goku since we've met, so I hope you don't take offense to my hope that he wins. I just know how much it would mean to him." Bulma ends by giving a hopeful glance at the tailless boy, as if silently asking him to understand.

Unfortunately the teenage genius didn't know that her puppy-dog face came off so innocently sweet, or about the kid's minimal experience with girls, so she was a little surprised by the way Krillin seemed to transform into a human tomato. The only thing to stop her from asking if he was okay, was a huff from Goku as he turned his head towards the window.

"Don't make it sound so fluffy Bulma; we're friends, and you're helping a friend, that's all you had to say." The gruff tone the little alien took was overshadowed though by the light dusting of pink in his cheeks. This let the girl know that, while he may be uncomfortable with the verbal expression of their friendship, it did not truly bother him. This knowledge made Bulma glad.

"Fine tough guy, then I guess you _don't_ want any of the food I ordered earlier. I guess you plan on going into that tournament on an empty stomach, huh?"

Just the mention of food got Goku's stomach to grumble, and although he knew she was kidding the threat of fighting after a day of no meals still set off a tick in the boy's eyebrow. However before Goku could address the absurdity of Bulma's idea, Roshi chimed in again, this time with a perverse gleam in his shades.

"Well ya know Bulma, if Kakarot doesn't appreciate your hospitality, I'd be more than happy to show you mine." The elderly martial arts master leaned forward in his seat, lips running over his lips as he leered at the young genius sitting a few feet from him.

The distraction allowed Goku to reach over and return the cuff that Roshi had handed out earlier, leaving the old man to huddle back against the couch and poke tenderly at the lump on his bald head. Grumbling a little in irritation, Roshi growled at his student, "What in the world was that for you little freak, I was only trying to-"

"Get on my nerves?" Goku mocked. "I couldn't agree with you more Roshi; I warned you the first day we met to keep your filthy hands to yourself. What you do with those disgusting magazines, on your time, is up to you but you will _not_ treat Bulma that way. Especially not while I'm around, I don't care if you did teach me martial arts."

Goku's quick defense made Bulma give the boy a grateful smile while the elderly man beside him could only stick his tongue out in retaliation. Then remembering what the teenage genius had just mentioned moments ago, Goku turned his attention back on Bulma. "So a second ago you said there was food for me to eat...where is it?"

Bulma's pleasant facade slipped away at her friend's demanding tone and was replaced by a look of almost lazy disbelief. "From sweet to budding caveman in five seconds; is that a new record for you Goku?"

"I have no idea what that's supposed to mean, since I was raised in the _mountains_ , not a cave, but I'd be happy to learn over some lunch." The pint-sized alien answered cheekily. Goku actually had a good idea what Bulma's remark meant, but he couldn't help taking advantage of the opening it left for him to retort.

On her end Bulma could only roller her eyes before muttering for the trio to follow her as she rose from her seat. Normally the girl would have had a more active reply to her young friend's teasing, but Bulma was honestly just to happy having Goku around again to bother entering into a verbal match with him. The following day would bring about the beginning of the World Tournament, which meant Goku would be busy, and in turn leave little time for them to spend together.

It wasn't until after the food had been eaten and both Krillin and Roshi meandered off to explore the expansive wonders of Capsule Corp that Bulma finally got that time she, and unknowingly Goku, had been looking for.

The two were currently held up in the room that would be Goku's for the night. The boy in question was currently in the joint bathroom trying on the suit Bulma had purchased for him while the girl herself waited patiently on the bed. Or at least, what _she_ thought was patiently.

"Come on Goku, you've been in there for like twenty minutes, what's taking you so long?"

From behind the bathroom door, the aforementioned alien's voice filtered through, his aggravation clear even though muffled. "It's only been _five_ minutes Bulma, and I'm not coming out because after seeing what I look like I've concluded that I look ridiculous!"

Hearing this Bulma facepalmed; leave it up to Goku, to think an imported Italian suit made him look dumb. Letting out her budding frustration with a sigh, the beautiful girl called to the boy. "Don't be silly Goku, that suit cost more than Roshi's entire island plus his capsule plane, and I had it ordered special just for you; the least you can do is let me see what it looks like on you. Please~?"

Behind the door Goku let out his own sigh, this one being of resignation, before he stepped over to the lock pad and pressed the release button. In the time it took him to blink, the sheet of metal whooshed open and allowed the young boy to step out and into his temporary bedroom.

Because Goku kept his head turned he didn't see Bulma's reaction, though even if he had the young alien probably wouldn't have understood it.

When she'd heard Goku press the lock release Bulma wasn't sure just what to expect upon the opening of the bathroom door; though she hoped her money had been well spent at the very least. So when her crystal-blue eyes finally got their first good look at Goku in his Italian suit, Bulma was unprepared for how close she nearly came to having her those same optical organs fall from her head. The suit she had gone with was colored a soft, ash-gray with a charcoal-black dress shirt underneath and a lush crimson tie. The light, elegant fabric of the piece seemed to mold itself around Goku's muscles without straining to contain it, lending the young teen an air of calm ferocity. This, coupled with the alien's wild hair and the imagination of his playful smirk made Bulma realize for the the first time that her friend would one day grow into an attractive young man.

However Goku himself took Bulma's silence to mean she was trying to hold back her laughter, and he quickly grew upset. Growling low in his throat, the monkey-tailed youth began to reach up so as to tear the humiliating garb from his body. This in turn snapped Bulma out of her stupor, and she cried out to keep her friend from shredding his suit. "Goku wait, what are you doing!?"

Snarling as he looked at her the boy replied, "I'm taking this thing off, what does it look like I'm doing!? You thought I wouldn't look stupid, but the second I stepped out of the bathroom you had to keep yourself from laughing, so there's no way I'm gonna wear these ridiculous clothes tomorrow!"

Hearing this the beautiful genius bristled, her mood quickly shifting into indignation as she thought about how much money would go to waste if the boy kept his word. Bulma cared greatly for Goku, yes, but even he wouldn't be allowed to take an expensive gift she'd given and throw it in her face! Moving faster than either occupant of the room thought her capable the blue-haired University graduate shot off the bed and stood over Goku with a firm set to her pampered brow.

"Oh no you don't! After how much that suit cost me there's absolutely zero chance of you wearing anything else to the check-in station for the World Tournament monkey boy; I don't care how dumb you _think_ you look!" It was here that Bulma allowed herself to back off a little, no longer towering over her younger friend but still standing close enough so that she could keep his from ruining his new clothes. "And besides Goku, you've got it all wrong. When I didn't say anything it wasn't because I was trying not to laugh, it was because I couldn't believe how _good_ the suit looked on you."

Goku could only stare up at Bulma with a shocked expression; largely due to just how fast the human girl had moved, though a bit of it was credited to the sincerity in her voice once she'd stopped yelling at him. Her anger had nudged at something inside, like the day they'd met, but just like then the boy pushed it aside so that he could address the current issue. "So then you _don't_ think I look like an idiot?"

Bulma shook her head. "No Goku, I don't, so please promise you'll wear the suit tomorrow?"

"...Fine," the young alien sighed. Then he arched one of his eyebrows and said, "So now that that's settled would you mind giving me my hands back? I'd like to change back into my gi now, if that's alright with you."

A soft warmth filled Bulma's cheeks as she realized that, in her haste to keep Goku from tearing his suit apart, she'd grabbed both his hands with her own. Letting out an embarrassed squawk of an apology the blue-haired beauty dropped the younger boy's hands as if they were on fire before trying to step out of Goku's personal space. Unfortunately, Bulma's nervous energy overrode her normal sense of grace and she tripped over her own feet. Another cry left the teenage girl's lips, this time one of surprise, and she attempted to ready herself for when she impacted with the carpet...only to find herself stopping short.

The sound of fabric ripping had seemed so much like white noise while she'd been screaming, but now that she found herself wrapped in Goku's tail Bulma came to the realization that when she'd first seen the boy in his new clothes his very articulate little add-on had _not_ been present. Looking down at her slim waist, and the furry tail coiled around it, and then over at the owner of that tail, Bulma could clearly see that Goku's 'third arm' was indeed coming from the back of his pants. This however confused the girl, and it must have shown on her face, because the next sound to fill the silent room was Goku's voice.

"I'd wrapped my tail around my thigh before putting on the pants, so no one would see it and I'd hopefully have some time to keep it a secret from other competitors, but when I saw you about to fall...well the thing just wound up acting on its own and tearing a hole in the back. Sorry Bulma."

Knowing her earlier attitude was responsible for the slight trace of grief in Goku's voice Bulma tried her best to fill her voice with as much reassurance as she could before telling him that it was okay. "You were making sure I didn't get hurt, I'd be crazy to get upset at you for that. Besides, from what I can see it's not too bad, just enough so that your tail can move freely. If anything I should have remembered that you needed a doorway for it, and had it patched in, so don't beat yourself up alright?"

The wild haired martial artist just looked at the girl who he considered his only friend and searched her eyes for any form insincerity within their depths. When he could find none however the young alien let his face relax, and a softer crease to knit his brow together as he nodded in assent.

With that out of the way Bulma stood upright and Goku released his hold on her. From there the girl voiced her desire to show the younger boy a special invention she'd started working on that would hopefully allow a person the ability to read minds. The pair exited the room, one listening as the other talked, but neither of their minds were really focused on the words passing in the air.

For Bulma it was the fact Goku had went and saved her without a second thought, despite his normal disregard to others safety.

For Goku, it was how soft Bulma's hands had felt clasped around his own much rougher pair, and the effect such an action had on his normally ironclad stomach.

 _ **xXx**_

The following morning was a whirlwind of activity for young Goku, being woken up at an absurdly early hour, rushing through breakfast and getting changed, before finally piling into one of Bulma's larger luxury cruisers and flying off to Papaya Island to make registration on time. It was while he was seated on the airbus that the young alien noticed something off about Krillin's suit compared to his own. In the short: Goku's looked _much_ nicer.

While the bald youth wasn't wearing rags by any stretch, it was still easy to see that a greater amount of money had gone into procuring Goku's own formal wear as opposed to Krillin's own ensemble. Where the alien boy's clothes were fit and trim, Krillin's came off as a bit block-like; as if it were designed to fit a general shape rather than the boy himself personally. Also the colors, navy blue with a white shirt underneath and neutral tie further added to Goku's speculation that Krillin's suit had been bought as an afterthought rather than as a gift like his had been. Coming to this conclusion Goku let his eyes gaze surreptitiously over at Bulma, who was piloting the aircraft, and be reminded of the question he had wished to ask her yesterday but forgotten. What did it mean to be friends, and were his strange new feelings normally associated with the title?

Unfortunately for the young alien he could not ask Bulma about such matters at the moment, as both Krillin and Roshi were aboard the airbus as well, and he did not wish to appear vulnerable or inept to either of the two. His pride simply wouldn't allow it.

So instead Goku sat back in silence and waited for the trip to end, letting himself be coaxed into a hazy alertness by the soft music playing over the device Bulma had introduced to him as a 'radio'. It would, after all, be a few hours before they reached Papaya Island.

Yet once they arrived and Goku had his fancy shoes on the ground again it quickly became apparent to the young boy just how big of a deal the Tenkaichi Budokai really was to the masses. The pop of small fireworks filled the air and mixed with the various scents of delicious food being cooked at stands that littered the grounds. People moved like a wave, packed together like sardines in a can, as they all tried to get to where they were going. The sun shone down from its place in the sky and illuminated a great many booths, each with their own vendor and game of skill or chance to play in an effort to win one of the prizes littering that back walls. Kids ran circles around their parents as they giggled, pointed, and some even begging if they passed a stall that truly caught their wide eye. All-in-all, it was a sensory overload for young Goku, who quickly found himself becoming uncomfortable with the whole thing.

He was just about to turn around and call for Numbus to get him off the island, tournament be damned with the headache he had coming on, when a familiar voice reached his ears. However this voice did not belong to Bulma, or either of his other two travel companions, no this voice was filled with mockery and distaste. This was the voice of Yamcha.

"Well well, look at what the cat dragged in Puar." The cocky former bandit chided as he and his ever-present companion strolled up on the newly arrived group. "Kakarot, so you really did decide to enter. That's good, because with the tournament being broadcast all over the world it means that when I defeat you there'll be no question of who the better man is."

The young alien in question raised his brow in a silent show of disbelief as he took in the sight of the older boy talking down to him. Where the wild-haired martial artist came dressed in his new look, appearing every bit the calm and confident contestant, Yamcha had clearly not taken the same extra measures in regards to his own appearance. The former bandit had come dressed in an old, navy-blue chinese-style shirt that had long sleeves and dark pants that were tied with string at his ankles. It was clear these clothes had not seen the light of day, as they appeared stiff and uncomfortable, and this did not pair well with the older boy's now waist-length unruly mop-top and scant traces of facial hair.

Finishing his once over Goku only offered a scoff before giving the older fighter a cocky smirk. "You, the better man? How can that be when you can't even claim to be a better fighter? Really Yamcha, I think it'd be in your best interest to just go home; I doubt your ego could take having the entire world see me humiliate you."

This taunting had the unkempt boy seeing red as he grit his teeth in embarrassed indignation, but before he could think up a retort another voice joined the conversation. This one belonging to Bulma, and as such had Yamcha instantly forgetting about his rival for the moment and focusing on the blue-haired beauty.

"Hey listen, guys, this really isn't the time. Goku you know that if we don't get you signed up you can't even compete, so how about saving all that tough guy talk for when you two actually meet in the ring?"

The pair looked at each other for a moment after that, one in a rushed sort of concern while the other's eyes held the strong desire to ignore their companions words. However such thoughts were pushed aside as Goku's inner animal balked at the thought of missing the chance to show his strength. So, with his mind made up, the monkey-tailed martial artist simply shrugged before beginning to walk away... though not without offering one last barb over his shoulder. "That's assuming he'll even make it that far."

With that the small group began to make their way towards the check-in station, Krillin asking about the other boy they were leaving behind, but Yamcha managed to shake himself out of his stupor long enough to stride over and begin walking alongside Bulma. Essentially inviting himself along, the former bandit attempted to strike up a conversation with his crush.

"S-So Bulma, I know you and I kinda left off at a weird place before I went to start my training, but I was hoping that after the tournament you and I could go out again? With the money I'll earn from the tournament I can take you somewhere nice, like you wanted before, a-and we can start over. What do you say?"

Bulma didn't answer right away. Instead she looked the boy beside her up and down, her normally expressive baby-blue's were lidded as she remembered the few dates she had already gone on with Yamcha. It was true, she _had_ voiced her wishes to be taken out to fancier atmosphere than what he'd provided, and he _could_ if he at least came in second at the tournament, but Bulma wasn't so sure it would be worth it in the end. She hadn't told Goku at the time, but her original wish for the dragon balls had been for the perfect boyfriend, yet as the hunt went on and Bulma became friends with the young alien she realized that was what she'd wanted all along; someone who cared about her for _her_ , and not just her looks or her family's wealth. Goku had given that to her, and so by the journey's end she found no need to waste her wish in such a way, and freely gave it up so as to return her friend to normal.

Because yes, Bulma knew she was spoiled and tended to behave like a princess, but the girl's genius didn't just pertain to all things scientific. Bulma knew a good thing when she saw it, and having Goku in her life was better than anything she'd experienced in a long time. So, it was with a sigh that she went ahead and gave her answer.

"We'll see Yamcha; but _only_ if you win, because I don't appreciate the way you were just talking to Goku."

For Yamcha that was as good as a 'yes' in his mind, although he did feel a sour taste in his mouth at the girl's mention of his rival's importance to her. What made that monkey so special anyway? None the less, the former bandit simply chose to shove away such thoughts and offer his crush a beaming smile.

From there it was a simple waiting in line that lead up to Goku being able to put his name down on the register; though he made sure to use Kakarot rather than his adoptive name. Once that was done and out of the way the group was separated, with the fighters being ushered into the preliminary hall while Bulma, Puar and Roshi were told they would have to wait outside. The beautiful girl waited until after the old man had wandered off to find the bathroom before turning to Puar and asking for a lift.

"You can transform right? Well would you mind turning into a ladder so that I can see what's going on inside; please?"

Puar eyed the human female for a moment before her own feline face broke out into a sly grin. Leering with a look that would make the Cheshire cat proud, Yamcha's faithful companion began to tease her fellow girl. "Oh~ what's this now Bulma? You were acting all hard-to-get with Yamcha, but here you are hoping I'll give you a lift so you can watch him in the tournament? You playful little minx, you."

And even though she recoiled in distaste Bulma did in fact think to agree with the female shape-shifter if only so gain her aid, but then the young girl's mind thought about what the consequences of such move could be. Puar would certainly wind up telling such a thing to the former bandit, and he would most assuredly never stop pursuing her then. It wasn't that she hated Yamcha by any stretch, she hardly even _knew_ him, but that didn't mean that she liked him either as he had not given her much to admire during their time together.

So with this in mind Bulma finally shook her head and told Puar 'no'. "I really just wanna see how Goku does. Since I can't be in there with him, I'd like to at least be able to cheer him on from out here; I hope you can understand Puar, and will still lend me a hand?"

The high-pitched feline could only look at the human girl with a look of disbelief etched onto her features, as if hearing anyone deny wanting her friend was inconceivable, but after another moment she nodded silently and floated over towards the brick wall that held an open window at its top. With a puff of pink smoke the flying cat was gone, and in her place leaned a sturdy ladder that held eyes settled along its top rung.

Bulma thanked Puar profusely as she scuttled up the feminine feline's transformed body and looked in at the mass of competitors, all vying for a chance to make it into the final eight. It was as she searched for her monkey-tailed friend that Bulma felt a twinge in her stomach. She wasn't sure what it was, but the blue-haired genius did her best to push it aside before continuing her search.

Down in the mosh pit of bodies Goku was hidden behind a pair of large bodies as he watched one fight in particular. The pair was an odd one, but they were both potential opponents, so the wild-haired alien felt it best to observe them in case he wound up coming up against one of them later on. One was a large bear, there really was no other way to describe it, who wore fitted spandex over his burly legs as the only sort of covering for his body. His large, deadly paws were currently swiping through the air in an effort to land a blow on the anthropomorphic creature's opponent.

Said individual was much smaller in comparison, yet they used this to their advantage as they ducked and weaved in-between the snarling bear's attacks. This contestant was a young boy, one Goku doubted was much older than himself if not the same age, with long dark hair. His raven locks were actually tied back into a pony-tail though, which gave a clear view of his youthful face and playfully arrogant facade. Wrapped around the young teen's neck was a ruby-red scarf, and Goku's keen eyes could make out the glint given off by the two gold earrings that pierced the other boy's lobes. The boy also wore a long-sleeve white shirt over a pair of dark-blue jeans, with a pair of snow boots on his feet.

Lapis, if Goku recalled the boy's name correctly, looked to be a adept if not unrefined fighter. His style was quick and relied a great deal on countering or capitalizing on his opponent's moves, but there was a definite sense of power behind each and every punch or kick that the boy threw in retaliation. Goku could see that Lapis was indeed the definition of raw potential, and would require a careful approach if he were to be faced in the future.

It was as Goku thought this that Lapis finally seemed to decide his match was over. The pony-tailed teen twisted around his opponent's left paw as it came in for another failed swipe, moving into the bear's guard, before he quickly took the large predator down with a number of quick strikes to its kidney's followed by a leaping chop to the back of the neck. With his foe unconscious, Lapis was declared the winner, and with a flip of his hair the boy exited the arena...though not before locking eyes with Goku.

Onyx met sapphire as the two boys gazes met, and while it was only seconds to those around them, for the young alien and his staring partner it felt like years. Each boy could feel the static that filled the air as they looked upon one another, could sense the tension building like a heavy fog; only to have it interrupted by the cries of shock and awe from another preliminary stadium near by. This broke the pair out of their contest and had them turning their attention towards the commotion. And while Lapis found himself smirking with pride at what he found, Goku's face shifted into one of curious wonder.

Standing alone in the ring was a young girl, and it was clear from the way her blonde locks were tied back in their own pony-tail to reveal her face that she was related to Lapis. This girl also held a pair of brilliant blue eyes and a svelte build. Her complexion came out a more creamy ivory rather than the dark-haired boy's rough vanilla tone. She was dressed in a similar style as well, though her long-sleeve shirt was a soft powder-blue while her jeans were almost black in color and fitted to her slim legs. The blonde girl also wore earrings and snow boots.

"And with accordance to the rules, winner by ring out is Lazuli!" The announcer for block C called to the crowed.

Down below Goku continued to look up at the girl now known as Lazuli as she turned her sharp gaze in the direction of Lapis. The young alien Could easily make out the nods they sent each others way and quickly deduced that they were at least partners in an effort to take both the first and second spots in the tournament. However before the monkey-tailed martial artist could give it much more thought he was bumped rather rudely on the shoulder as Lapis walked by him. Shooting the other boy a fierce glare, Goku was surprised to see it countered; though the pony-tailed boy's look held a bit of mockery in it as well.

"I'd tell you to take a picture cause it'd last longer, but there's no way I'd let a loser like you even _think_ about my sister that way. A word of advice, _monkey-boy_ , she's way out of your league and doesn't deal with wimps."

With that the dark-haired delinquent sauntered off to join, who Goku now knew to be, his sister who was holding up her hand in greeting. It was right before he turned at the sound of his name being called, but the spiky-haired teen met Lazuli's eye, and just like with her brother there was a spark that past between them...only this time it was one of intrigue rather than hostility.

And it was only through his advanced sense of hearing that the boy managed to catch the pretty blonde asking her brother, "So was that a new friend of yours, Lapis?"

Something about the girl's voice had the hair on the back of Goku's neck stand on end, and even got his tail to flick as that something traveled its length to the tip. But as he climbed the steps into his own arena of Block B, and faced down a fierce-looking man of commanding height. He easily towered over Goku, who barely came up to the other fighter's waist. The man was heavy with muscle, and his skin was a dark chestnut color. He wore yellow robes that revealed much of his stone-like stature and that were tied at the waist by a royal-blue sash. His hair was a wild and curly mess, while his goatee was neatly trimmed.

"The next match of Block B: Kakarot V.S. King Chappa!"

Cheers and jibes filled the air as the two combatants took center stage in the arena. A number of spectators made fun of the pint-sized warrior stacked up against the mountain of hard muscle that was Goku's opponent, but the boy in question did not heed such foolish words. Goku had trained, long and hard, in both the physical as well as the mental aspects of martial arts to augment his already impressive ability so to him all those laughing were due for a demonstration.

He would show them the might of the one they'd come to know as Kakarot.

Across the tiled floor King Chappa scoffed as he took in his miniature foe. "What is this, a _child_? Please, someone take this boy from the ring and bring me a proper opponent. This tournament is meant for fighters, not foolish boys."

"The only fool I see here is you," Goku countered as he settled into his opening stance. He had long since changed out of his suit and into a gi, the familiar freedom of his uniform giving him peace as he stared down the older man before him. "You claim I have no place here before even giving me a chance to prove myself, so imagine how embarrassing it'll be when I've defeated you in front of all these people."

By this point the referee for their section had begun the match, so Chappa swiftly moved into his own opening stance before growling at Goku. "Stupid boy, you talk big but I'll show you the strength of a true warrior!"

From his place in the ring Goku watched as Chappa burst into a swift charge, fully intent on finishing the fight quickly. Unfortunately for the large man his opponent had been trained by someone who moved much faster, and who had shown Goku how to increase his own speed. So before Chappa was even within striking distance Goku had shifted to better receive the man's opening attack. A powerful knife-hand strike meant to disable the nerves in an enemies shoulder was easily swatted aside, which left Chappa in enough of a shocked stupor so that Goku could get inside the man's guard and land a heavy knee to the stomach. This counter-attack sent the wild-haired boy's adversary reeling back as he fought to get air back into his lungs.

Unfortunately for Chappa, the inner animal inside of Goku roared with the desire to teach the man a lesson; to show him, and all who watched, that Kakarot was the strongest and that all who stood before him would fall!

And so, as the other fighter staggered back in pain, Goku tensed his body before launching forward and slamming his fist into Chappa's sternum. Making sure not to apply his full strength in case he caused some sort of deadly injury, Goku went on to bring his left leg up into a swift kick to the side of Chappa's face. The power behind that third strike proved to be more than enough to end the match though, because it sent the large man rocketing backwards and out of the ring.

After the resounding 'thud' that came with a heavy body smacking into the ground the area around Block B's arena was silent. None watching could believe their eyes as the young teen known as Kakarot stood tall and imposing at the center of the stage. A strange mix of tension and awe settled over the crowed; a heavy blanket that seemed almost palpable. It quickly became so unbearable, so _suffocating_ , that a number of contestants actually began to back away and silently decide to give up before they were forced to compete against the monkey-tailed boy still standing in the arena.

This thick air was broken though by a very feminine voice calling out from somewhere along the edges of the building. Many heads turned, including Goku's, to look at who was shouting. The young martial artist himself almost facepalmed upon learning what the noise was.

Bulma. The young beauty had obviously managed to find her friend just in time to witness his victory over King Chappa, because currently she was waving her hands in the air and hollering congratulations at him. "Way to go G—Kakarot! You definitely showed that guy who's boss, now just keep it up and that title's as good as yours!"

From his place back in the ring Goku arched his eyebrow at the girl's enthusiasm. He'd almost forgotten just how...zealous his friend could be. _'But she did remember to call me Kakarot rather than Goku, so at least there's that.'_ He thought with a smirk as he gave the cheering girl a quick nod before descending from the arena. However, as he touched down off the last step there was a niggling in the back of Goku's mind that thought about how odd it was to hear that name come from Bulma's lips. About how, somewhere deep down, it sounded _wrong_ ; like he should always be 'Goku' to the blue-haired girl.

Yes if there was one thing Goku was sure of, it was that Bulma Briefs had opened up a whole new world to him both outside and within. One the young alien found both pleasant, but also horribly confusing.

What neither Goku nor Bulma knew though was that back over by the arena of Block C Lazuli's sapphire eyes were trained solely on the spiky-haired teen as he both claimed his victory, as well as leave his own arena. The pretty young blonde found herself intrigued by the boy's obvious strength, and it showed if the gleam in her eyes was any indication. Her brother however, did not like this.

"Don't even think about it sis, we already decided _this_ was the best way to free our village from those scum. We _don't_ need that kid's help." Lapis admonished the girl beside him. His next match wouldn't be for a while, so he had chosen to stay next to the girl and keep her safe from any unsavory characters in the temple.

"And if we lose, _little brother_ , what then? We won't have the money to buy any sort of protection then, and we'll be right back to square one; so what's the harm in asking that Kakarot guy for help? We'll need all the help we can get and something tells me that, with him on our side, we may actually be able to take down Muscle Tower."

Lapis gripped his sister's shoulder roughly and turned her to look at him. His own azure orbs locked with the sapphire gems of his twins as she hissed at her. "The harm is that he is an outsider, an unknown, and there's no telling if he'll fall to the sway of greed like so many others we've tried to go to for help. What will you have to say then, Lazuli, if your supposed _champion_ turns that strength you believe him to have back on us?"

Lazuli glared at her younger brother for a moment before shrugging his hand from her shoulder and getting in his face. " _Don't_ talk about that scum to me brother, and certainly don't attempt to liken someone you don't even know to that man simply because you wish to be overprotective. If this plan of yours fails I _will_ ask Kakarot for his help, and you _will_ keep your mouth shut if he accepts. Because you may like living as a thug, but I refuse to spit on mother's grave anymore."

With that Lazuli turned her back on her brother and folded her arms across her chest, signaling that she was done with the conversation. It wasn't until she heard her twin huff and walk away that the pretty blonde turned her eyes back on the boy with the bandanna. Hard pieces of sapphire softened with sorrow as Lazuli thought about how her brother used to be.

Before the take over of their village by the Red-Ribbon Army. Before the betrayal of their father. And before the death of their mother.

The image of a smiling, happy Lapis found its way to the front of Lazuli's memory. One of the dark-haired boy nursing a homeless wolf pup he'd found in the forest, and hid away in their room so that their parents didn't find out. Only to have it shattered by the image of a scowling teen surrounded by his fellow thugs as they held up a grocery store, their signature scarfs keeping their identities hidden.

 _'Oh brother, what happened to you?'_

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Well this was a bit later than I wanted it to be, but here's the next chapter for Warrior instincts. Not much in the way of fighting in this chapter, but there will definitely be lots of punching and kicking during the next chapter!**_

 _ **I know I don't give a lot of time to people like Krillin or Roshi, but it's because of Goku/Kakarot's own personal relationships with those characters...there really isn't one. Bulma is still his only friend, which is why she has the most lines alongside him, where as Krillin and Goku/Kakarot's relationship never really mended after their first spar. My Goku isn't anywhere near as open as the original, and instead carries that Saiyan pride and self-importance that is prevalent in the race even though he doesn't fully understand that he has them. This makes him getting close to anyone difficult, and has only allowed him to get close to Bulma because he can see the sincerity in her actions as they spend time together. There is also the fact that his Saiyan instincts draw him to Bulma, but I try to have Goku sort of ignore those for now in light of the obvious challenges set before him.**_

 _ **I hope everyone understands who Lapis and Lazuli are, because if not, they are the original names for Androids 17 and 18 respectfully. They will be what draws Goku into the Muscle Tower arc, as they take the place of S'now from the original story. They will also be taking the place of Bacterian as well as Ranfan from the original story's cast of World Tournament combatants.**_

 _ **Oh, and in case anyone got confused, I used King Chappa as Goku's opponent because he was just the first person who came to mind for him to fight. That's the only reason really, plus I didn't feel like going back to check who is actual opponent was during that first tournament.**_

 _ **Well, I think that's it for now, so I hope you enjoyed this chapter and are looking forward to the next one.**_


	9. Chapter 9

_**Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch.9- Time to Put up or Shut Up; The World Tournament gets underway!**_

 _ **xXx**_

Goku watched as Krillin knocked his opponent clear out of the stadium to earn himself the final spot in the quarter finals, and couldn't help but admire the other boy's form as he stood post-knockout. Krillin had come a long way from the bratty child of Orin Temple; he had matured greatly under Roshi's guidance, both as a person as well as a martial artist. Where before the bald youth would have turned out each strike with a brief moment of hesitation and hint of fear, now the young monk was capable of striking true, raw conviction behind every fist thrown and every leg lifted into a kick.

The boy's attitude had also been given an adjustment. Sure, Goku found the other boy's slight perversion to be a bother, but the spiky-haired alien didn't let such a thing stop him from noticing that underneath that distasteful quirk Krillin was an honorable individual at his core. It also helped that after being humbled by both Goku _and_ their instructor Krillin's haughty attitude took itself down a few notches; going from bragging, to simply self-assured in his own abilities.

All in all Goku found that Krillin made for a decent example of the human race's male half; Bulma being his look at the inner workings of the female persuasion.

"Winner by knock out; Krillin!" The announcer for the bald youth's block shouted to the crowd that had gathered to witness the final battle of the preliminary rounds. Krillin himself was now standing beside the man with the microphone, a large grin plastered over his face with his right hand up in victory sign. Goku rolled his onyx orbs at the spectacle, but there was a slight smile tugging at his lips as well; two of the youngest competitors had just beat out hundreds if not thousands of adult fighters, and were now on their way to being in the final eight.

And yet...thinking about his and Krillin's success caused Goku to think about the other two young fighters who had managed to take spots in the quarter finals. Lapis an Lazuli, the brother sister duo had each defeated every opponent sent their way and clinched slots in the next round. Although, and thinking of it caused the monkey-tailed alien's eyes to drift, neither twin managed to come away completely unscathed. Lapis had suffered a nasty black eye and bloody lip combo while the rough teen's sister finished with a number of bruises along her arms and one on her stomach that Goku had caught sight of when Lapis had pulled her shirt up to inspect the damage done. But while the plum-like discoloration, which clashed terribly with the blonde's creamy complexion, hadn't even seemed to phase the girl and this silently impressed Goku to the point he unconsciously found his eyes swinging back in her direction.

However before the dark-haired fighter could catch the conversation the blonde as about to have with her brother his attention was nabbed by the main announcer. He was a young man, with his own head of golden hair, though not the same brilliant platinum of Lazuli, and a boyish face despite being a few years older than Goku himself. He was dressed in a black suit and tie, with a white dress shirt underneath depicting him as the head of the announcer chain. However Goku paid little mind to this, and instead listened as the young man gave instructions on how things would proceed now that the qualifying matches had drawn to a close.

"All of you who've managed to advance to quarter finals please come forward and draw a number from this box in my hands, this will decide your placement in the upcoming matches as well as your opponent. And just as a reminder; there is to be no switching upon learning who you're matched against, if you don't feel ready then all I can say is better luck next time."

From there Goku watched and listened as names were called and fighters were paired, until finally the announcer seemed to come to _his_ name on the list. "Um, I'm sorry if I butcher this but...K-Karrot?"

"It's Kakarot, but your mistake is forgiven. I understand my name is a bit difficult to mold; it's...foreign." The young alien shrugged as he stepped forward to take his own spot on the board. Reaching into the plain, yellow box Goku rummaged his fingers around the remaining slips of paper before taking hold of one and pulling it out into the open. Onyx-black orbs scanned the sliver of paper for a brief second before handing it to the announcer and telling him his number. "Seven; which puts up against...Giren, right?"

The large, flying dinosaur-like fighter in question leered at Kakarot with a malicious gleam in his eye as he stared the boy down from his place in the crowd. He'd seen his much younger opponent fight from the very beginning and had quickly deduced that the spiky-haired boy would no doubt make it at least this far. _'Too bad he's up against_ _ **me**_ _right off the bat though; poor kid will be lucky to be alive after I'm through with him.'_

If Goku had any inkling that he knew what his future opponent was thinking, he showed no sign of it, and instead listened as the blonde man with the microphone announced the next series of matches for the tournament.

"Krillin vs Lapis in the first match!"

Which would be followed by, "Yamcha vs Jackie Chun!"

Third would be, "Lazuli vs Nam!"

With "Goku vs Giren" being the final match of the quarter finals.

This, plus the last bit of information stating that competitors would be given rooms to stay in at one of the closer hotels were all that Goku felt he needed to hear before making his exit from the temple. Once outside however, the young monkey-tailed martial artist nearly lashed out in shock as he was swooped upon, and lifted into a soft but firm hug.

"Aaah! Goku you did it, you made it past the first round; I'm so proud of you!" Bulma gushed as she swung her younger friend around in her embrace. "I mean, not that I didn't think you wouldn't make it of course, but I'm just so happy to have been here to see it."

From there Bulma began rambling about going out to eat to celebrate this accomplishment, and while Goku was more than ready to chow down and fill his newly hungry belly, the boy had to free himself from the blue-haired beauties clutches first. "That sounds great and all Bulma, but first you have to let me down."

An embarrassed blush tinted Bulma's cheeks a rosy pink as she realized her friend was right, as well as the fact she'd practically glomped him like some sort of airheaded fangirl. A little mortified at her overly familiar gesture, even if they were each others only friends, Bulma gently set Goku back on his feet before taking a step back and scratching her cheek in a show of nervousness. "S-Sorry about that Goku, I guess I just got really excited fro you, ya know? I know how much you wanna win."

"Well if he plans to do that he might be better off skipping the celebrations and getting some rest." Came the voice of Roshi as he stepped into sight with his trusty walking stick. "The matches from here on out are going to be a lot tougher than the ones you fought today, Kakarot, and you'd do well to pay attention to each and every pair that comes before you. You never know what you could learn, or what small understanding of ones fighting style could do to tip a match in your favor."

Goku listened half-heartedly to the elderly man's advice, focusing instead on a scent in the air that he was sure he'd caught before. It had been during the preliminary matches, and it had been feint due to the large crowd of people that had gathered within, but Goku's nose was unlike that of a mere human. The young alien knew what he smelled, just not _where_ , or why it was so familiar.

Noticing that he was being expected to answer however, the spiky-haired youth went with the only one he figured was worth giving. "Your apparent concern isn't necessary old man; I didn't even break a sweat today. Besides, I'll rest much better after haven eaten, don't you agree?" It wasn't just that though. Goku knew he fought better after eating a large meal, and in turn struggled mightly if he went too long without eating before engaging in combat. It was a function of his body that the young teen had quickly figured out after beginning his spars with Gohan, and one he'd kept a secret even from the elderly man to this very day. Something in the back of Goku's brain just flared whenever the thought of revealing this to anyone came to mind, much like how his tail had once been a weakness. However that furry little problem had been remedied some time ago, before the young alien even met Bulma, so as to completely remove any sort of real weakness that Goku felt an enemy might exploit.

Roshi gave the younger fighter a disgruntled look though in accordance to Kakarot's blase attitude towards his warnings, yet he didn't get the chance to offer a rebuttal because Yamcha soon stepped in to make his own goals known. "I say let the kid do what he wants, even if it is foolish to not heed the words of a martial arts legend such as yourself. It'll just make my victory over him that much sweeter as he realizes how much he still has to learn about the arts."

"This coming from a former thief, who's style of attack played on the unsuspecting innocence of tourists so that he could slit their throats in the night and make off with their belongings." Goku countered immediately, a grin beginning to play on his boyish face. "But by all means, please, tell me more about what it means to be a _true_ martial artist Yamcha."

The shaggy-haired older boy ground his teeth as he stared down the younger fighter in front of him. So bad did Yamcha wish to pummel Kakarot's face in with his Wolf-Fang Fist, yet despite his grudge against the boy with the monkey tail, the former bandit had something more important to deal with at the moment...talking to Bulma. Something even Yamcha was beginning to find was much easier if he did it _before_ instigating any sort of spar, physical or verbal, with the boy she seemed to have glued to her hip.

And so, swallowing his pride, Yamcha did in deed manage to turn from Kakarot and let his eyes fall on the curvaceous form of his crush. Managing a small grin the older boy said, "So Bulma did you see how I handled all those wannabe martial artists in there? It was a piece of cake, and I doubt this old guy Jackie Chun is going to offer much more of a challenge. I'll be wearing that championship belt, and taking you out to dinner, by the end of the week I bet."

"I'd rethink that if I were you." Krillin chimed in as he came upon the growing circle of tournament attendees. The shine on his bald head and fresh scent of soap let everyone know that he had taken a shower after the preliminary rounds were over, probably using the internally facilities provided for the fighters. "I managed to catch a couple of that old guys fights and he's pretty good; Jackie's form each time was excellent, and he seemed to defeat his opponents in less than a minute without even breaking a sweat."

Hearing this Yamcha scoffed, waving his hand through the air as if to shoo away the very notion that this 'Jackie Chun' could defeat _him_. "Yeah yeah, he beat a bunch of posers and made it to the quarter finals, any fighter worth their salt could manage that. I'll really be impressed if he can stand up to me without breaking down in fear at the sight of my Wolf-fang Fist."

"You love to brag about your silly little technique, but not once have I ever seen you beat anyone with it. "Goku taunted. " _Maybe_ , if you spent more time practicing your martial arts skills instead of chasing Bulma's skirt, you'd be able to come up with a worthwhile attack."

The older boy bristled at that shot to his skills, as well as his character. "Hey, my Wolf-fang Fist is every bit as dangerous as the Kamehameha wave when I get serious; and the only reason you bested me back in the dessert was because Bulma distracted me! Besides, what does a puny little runt like you know about courting a woman like Bulma, you're just a dumb kid!"

"All right, that's enough!" Bulma demanded as she stepped once again between the two boys. Hands on her hips and elegant eyebrows furrowed into a strong scowl, the beautiful teenage genius let her crystal-blue eyes burn holes into Yamcha's gaping visage. "I told you once before that I don't like you insulting Goku, Yamcha, so as a guy who's so interested in keeping my attention you'd think you would play nice with my friend. But no, you don't seem to wanna do that; well guess what, until you decide to shape up your attitude the deals off! You want another shot with _me_ , then I'd better see some major improvement once this tournament is over, because I _wont_ be giving you another chance after this."

Yamcha shook with fright at the thunderous display of righteous fury being shown to him by Bulma. Never before had the young man had a woman tear into him so deeply. So naturally the only thing the former bandit could do was nod his head rapidly in understanding before blabbering that he was going to head off to the hotel to get some rest.

Scurrying off however, the older boy would miss the verbal thrashing his self-proclaimed rival would soon be receiving as well.

While Bulma tore into Yamcha, Goku stood off on his side and simply watched. A tingling sensation began to ripple across the boy's skin, raising goosebumps along his forearms as the monkey-tailed alien took in the spectacle that was Bulma Brief's anger. Her normally melodious voice rose in pitch and took on a much more shrill quality that, while a bit grating on Goku's sensitive ears, stirred something in the pit of his stomach; the no-nonsense tone, and how demanding the girl was being seemed to strike at Goku's core. And there was her face, scrunched in a fierce display reminiscent of the large but graceful jungle cats he'd encountered in the mountains. Bulma's eyes especially blazed with a sense of ire that made them sharpen and gleam like the deadliest of weapons while her normally creamy complexion had flushed a slight pink, which only caused her eyes to stand out all the more. Yes, something primal deep inside Goku liked seeing his friend in such a mood...although he became less sure of this when Bulma turned that look on _him_ after the former bandit went running.

"And _you_ , I recall asking for you both to keep all that dumb rivalry stuff in the ring. So why did you have to let Yamcha bait you into a verbal match?"

"It's not much of a battle when my opponent lacks any basic common sense or wit, Bulma. Besides, it's only Yamcha who sees us as rivals; I personally couldn't care at all about anything he does. The guy's an average fighter at best, and is therefore not worth my time. I need to be fighting real opponents, fighters who can actually push me to limits so that victory will be that much more satisfying after I've ground them into the dirt; that wimpy wolf offers nothing of the sort."

Bulma was left a little speechless by her friends response to her attitude. Instead of breaking down into a tantrum like she'd expected, the young alien instead rebuffed the brilliant teen's words with his own personal beliefs and views so as to render her words moot. And yet, something about the way Goku had spoken bothered Bulmal; he sounded a touch too arrogant. As if he'd already decided he was going to win the tournament no matter who his opponent was. This caught the blue-haired beauty's attention because, while Goku had always taken pride in his skills as a martial artist, the younger teen had never gone so far as to proclaim himself the strongest fighter on the planet; the other martial artists merely reduced to essentially training dummies for the spiky-haired alien's personal growth. This new side to Goku caused Bulma to take a step back mentally and really look at her friend, hoping that this dark mark didn't spread throughout his whole personality.

However before the young heiress could do too much pondering, Roshi chimed in with his own two cents, his words acting as a warning to the monkey-tailed youth standing in front of him. "I'd be careful of that sort of attitude Kakarot, I've seen a great deal of promising young fighters destroy their own careers with pride like that, and with your potential I'd hate to see it happen to you."

Goku raised an eyebrow at that. "I've seen just about every single one of the other contestants fight already Roshi, so I know a enough about what their capable of to stand firm in my belief that none of them are going to defeat me, with Krillin being the only viable threat to that claim due to his training under you."

"Just be careful Kakaraot," Roshi admonished lightly with a shake of his head. "I'd hate to see you let yourself be blinded by your own ability, and lose sight of the true meaning behind martial arts." With that the old man excused himself before turning and ambling away into the crowd, throwing back that he'd meet them at the hotel.

With Krillin quickly following on the footsteps of his sensei, Goku and Bulma were left alone together in the crowd of tournament watchers. Silence reigned for only a moment before the girl turned her eyes down and addressed the boy at her side. "Well I guess that means it'll just be you and I celebrating tonight Goku; if you're still up to it, I mean."

The thought of getting away from Roshi and the words that he'd used to stick a thorn in Goku's side, the young alien let his gaze fall away from the elderly fighter's retreating form and turn upwards to look Bulma in the eye. "Sounds good to me; I'm definitely starving. And at least this way I'll be able to eat in peace."

With that the pair began exiting the tournament grounds, unaware of the azure eyes that stared after them.

 _ **xXx**_

It was the following morning that found a young Goku standing stoically, arms crossed, staring out at the fighters ring no more than a stone's throw away. A small path of only a few feet separated it from the fighter's box that housed all those still waiting for their turn. And while his own match wasn't until the end, the spiky-haired martial artist decided that watching Krillin's fight with Lapis would be a good learning experience for him.

The match had only just been called, so the pair were consequentially only now entering the ring.

The dark-haired boy had changed his outfit from the one he'd worn during the preliminary rounds. Gone was the long-sleeve shirt and fitted jeans; in their place were a baggy tee with the sleeves ripped off and cargo shorts. His snow boot had also been replaced by a pair of athletic sneakers, although Lapis still wore his bandanna tied around his neck.

Krillin, much like yesterday, sported the orange and blue uniform of the Turtle Hermit school of martial arts. His bald head gleaming against the morning sun, and a confident smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. Looking across the small gap that separated him from his adversary, the boy from Orin Temple offered a greeting. "I didn't get the chance to see you in the preliminary rounds, but I'm guessing you're good if you made it this far; I hope we can have a good match, and can give these people a good show."

Lapis response came with a stern disposition, making Krillin flinch at its level of harshness. "A good show? I'm not here funnel cakes and silly games kid; this is all about the win for me. So I hope you're ready to lose."

Krillin was baffled by Lapis' stone-walled response, but before the bewildered balled youth could make a rebuttal however the announcer standing outside the ring announced that the match had begun, and Lapis took that as the perfect time to rush him.

Immediately being put on the defensive, Krillin's training kicked in and he shifted his body to better deflect the curled fist that came shooting at his face. Letting out a strangled grunt as he swatted the first attack to the side, Krillin answered with a palm-strike that grazed Lapis' shoulder as the dark-haired boy twisted out of its path. Seeing an opening from there Krillin quickly pulled his open hand back and took hold of his opponent's lightly muscled shoulder; gripping the skin tightly, Krillin heaved himself into the air, and then proceeded into an attempt at driving his knee up under Lapis' chin. The other boy wasn't able to catch it in time, so the dark-haired fighter reeled back from the pain before beat a hasty retreat to the farther side of the ring. However, Krillin wasn't keen to give his opponent any time to recover, and followed right behind in a swift fashion.

Lapis took note of his pursuer and reacted accordingly. Falling back onto his back foot, and placing his weight there, the dark-haired boy jumped up into the air so as to get himself out of Krillin's immediate line of sight. That brief break in the action proved to be invaluable, as when the bald student of the Turtle-Hermit style came leaping after him Lapis was ready to receive him. Catching the other boy's kick at the knee Lapis then used his other hand to stop Krillin from freeing himself by way of a spartan-kick to his chest, which then the young thug an opening to then headbutt Krillin and follow up with a devastating knee to his stomach, and a hammer-fist to the back that sent the former monk plummeting to the hard tile of the arena floor.

Krillin hadn't expected his opponent to recover as quickly as he had, nor the impressive offensive onslaught in return, but as the ground came closer and closer the slightly younger boy managed to regain control of his body so as to keep from smashing into the arena. Catching himself on his hands, angling carefully so as to not damage his wrists, Krillin then sprung off to the side to avoid the incoming fist that Lapis was attempting to lance him with. When his feet touched back to the ground Krillin used what little grip he had to try and propel himself back into the fight, and hopefully catch Lapis with a counter-attack. Twisting his body in mid-air, the bald fighter attempted to bring his knee down hard onto the crown of the other boy's head; he missed by mere inches. Quickly working with the momentum of his last move though Krillin did manage to spin on the ball of his foot once it returned to the arena floor and slam a swiftly thrown roundhouse into Lapis' stomach.

For Lapis this only served to fuel his growing anger at the situation as a whole. While the match hadn't been going on for long, he had been on the defensive for the most of it, and this was grating on the young teen's nerves. Never in his village home had anyone ever given him so much as a black eye, and while he'd managed to catch a few bruises during the preliminary rounds, Lapis had assumed that had been the extent of any participants skill level, and the rest of the tournament would flow much the same way. Yet here was this kid, Krillin, forcing the fifteen-year-old gang leader to push himself to the limits of his bodies ability just so as to keep up! Being struck by the bald boy's last kick had sent Lapis stumbling back a number of steps, sure, but the boy with the red scarf only tensed his stomach muscles to fight the pain and threw himself back into the fight. Hopping into the air Lapis threw a scissor-kick at his opponent before coming down and lashing out with a viscous left-right combo. Azure eyes narrowed though when Krillin managed to deflect both punches after avoiding his kicks, and this tunnel vision almost cost the boy his footing when Krillin went low for a sweep-kick. Luckily Lapis managed to overstep most of the attempt, earning only a slight stumble rather than being knocked totally off his feet.

However this didn't bother Krillin, instead the bald former monk only played into this by pressing his opponent with a quick series of punches. Half made it past Lapis' guard, leaving what both boys knew were the beginnings of more bruises, while the last one was used as a feint to set up for an uppercut. Somehow the dark-haired boy managed to swing his torso back fast enough to keep his jaw intact, and this surprise caught Krillin so swift that he was ill prepared to put up a real defense against the other boy's snap-kick that came right on the heels of the failed attack. A hasty cross-block was what saved Krillin from having his ribs stomped, and allowed him to only take a step back to brace himself rather than curl over in breathless agony. This single change gave the squat, orange-clad youth the opportunity to duck the heavy right-hook that came calling for the side of his head. Months of training with Roshi kicked in here and Krillin's right fist shot out almost without his realization to catch Lapis in the ribs.

Pain exploded from Lapis' torso and filled his sight with a blinding white light for a moment as the message shot to his brain. That pain distracted the young village boy enough however for his opponent to pivot on one foot, to deliver a debilitating kick to Lapis' sternum; the force sending him shooting clear out to the edge of the ring!

Coming down onto his back and then tumbling painfully the rest of the way, Lapis' unfocused blue eyes barely managed to take note of how close he was to being rung out, so in an act of desperation he scrambled his limbs to catch the lip of the arena as his body went rolling over it. Muscles screaming at him to let them rest, and a thundering torment in his chest were actively ignored in favor of hanging on to the edge of the ring; the edge of hope. The safety of his village was on the line, and Lapis used this, and the anger he housed towards his father and the Red-Ribbon Army, to haul himself back into the ring.

From the sidelines Goku had to say that he was impressed with both Lapis' sense of resolve, as well as his obvious raw talent. It was only with careful, trained eyes that allowed the spiky-haired martial artist to see that during the entire match the equally dark-haired Lapis' was no real match for Krillin. Sure, the boy with the scarf had landed a number of blows, but they were hasty and lacked any true semblance of balance between power and technique. Add to that Krillin's obvious speed advantage, and it was easy even for an amateur to see that only a lucky shot would grant Lapis victory in this fight...something the boy's sister seemed to understand, From the corner of his eye Goku had watched the pretty blonde's reactions as she watched her male double duke it out with Krillin, and he could see it clear on her face that Lazuli knew; her brother was about to lose.

 _'And even if he doesn't,'_ the young alien thought as he watched the battered boy struggle to his feet. _'This in only the first round of fighters that are at least equal to Krillin, so whoever he faced next would surely be enough of match for him and toss him from the tournament. He's finished.'_

Just as Goku thought this however, his eyes widened in disbelief as Lazuli's gasp of shock drew his attention fully to the ring...where Lapis had Krillin wrapped in a bear-hug, and was tossing them _both_ out of the ring!

Krillin wasn't entirely sure what had just happened; one minute he was charging his opponent, intent on winning their match, the next he was being dragged down out of the arena. Realizing just what Lapis had in mind Krillin began to struggle with all his might to escape the other boy's hold, he thrashed and kicked while yelling for Lapis to let him go. Unfortunately, while the bald teen had the more practiced fighting style, it would seem the dark-haired village boy was the one who possessed the greater physical aptitude. And even with his obviously painful injuries, it would seem winning was more important than his health, because Lapis was grimacing in immense pain the whole way down until finally he turned...and landed underneath Krillin as _he_ hit the grassy lawn outside the ring!?

"Despite a desperate move it would seem Lapis' strategy has backfired!" The announcer shouted into his microphone, the surprise clear as he continued on. "As per tournament rules, since Lapis has landed outside of the ring, he has lost the match; Krillin is the winner!"

Back on the sidelines Goku could fee a slight tugging at his lips as they creased into a nearly imperceptible smirk. Krillin had won. In the face of very real defeat, even if it had been underhanded and sneaky, the other boy had managed to twist himself just enough during the fall to make sure Lapis would be the one to hit the ground. A truly brilliant display of resolve, following behind a fair showing of skill. _'Yes,'_ Goku thought with a nod of his head. _'Krillin is definitely becoming a much more respectable fighter. However...'_

Here the spiky-haired boy with the monkey tail peered over at the blonde girl standing only a few feet away, and was interested to find that instead of being distraught at her brother's loss Lazuli was...a strange mix of smarmy and _relieved_? This bit of information threw Goku for a loop as he couldn't understand what could cause the blonde to root against her own brother; as even if they'd been in a personal competition Goku believed the two would want to claim the two top spots for themselves. The girl's odd behavior only became more of a mystery when Goku noticed she was beginning to walk over to him! However, all his time with Bulma allowed Goku to keep his face straight as he too gave the girl his full attention, only briefly noticing that her brother was being carried away on a stretcher.

"Is there something I can help you with, Miss Lazuli?" Goku spoke once she was only a few inches from him. And while he didn't allow his eyes to stray to anywhere below her neck, the gi-clad teen did observe the pretty blonde with an intense focus. "Your brother looks like he's in pain, don't you think you should go to him?"

For her part Lazuli was more than a little shocked that the boy in front of her knew, or at least remembered, her name. However the girl didn't allow this to stun her for long, and after taking a deep breath to center herself began to speak. "I'm sure he his, and I will, but this is the best chance I have to speak with you about something very important. You see, Kakarot, my village needs help...and I believe _you_ are that help. My brother believed that he and I could enter this tournament and win all the money, to buy mercenaries, but I always knew his plan was doomed to failure somehow, from the start. Before he and I arrived here I believed that my village would never be free, but then I saw you and something just...spoke to me. I truly think I was brought here to meet you, _Goku_."

Goku had listened to Lazuli's speech with half an ear, but once she said his earth name the boy's eyes sharpened in focus, and he leaned close so he and the girl's noses nearly touched. "Alright, listen and listen good, I don't know where you heard that name but only my friends call me Goku. People I don't like, let alone even _know_ , they call me Kakarot; understand? Now I don't know what trouble your village is going through, but I really don't see what any of it has to do with me, so why don't you just drop out and carry that brother of yours home so that he can lick his wounds?"

"Because I know, somehow I just do, that if you come back to the village with me everything will come to an end. I feel it in my core, Kakarot, that you are the one who will defeat the Red-Ribbon Army. They have plagued my home for years, terrorized the people of my _home_ , and caused the deaths of a number so great across the world that I can't even imagine it. You say that my village's problem is not your own, and that may be true, but what about when their done with my home and they move on to yours? Will you ignore them then? Kakarot I'm asking you, please, come back with my brother and I when the tournament is over and put an end to the Red-Ribbon Army and their madness... _please_."

Goku didn't move; he almost felt as if he _couldn't_ move. Or breath. Being so close to Lazuli gave him a clear view of the depths that were her eyes. The brilliant sapphires shone with such intense emotion, only enhanced by the unshed tears that gave the pretty blonde's eyes an almost vibrant glow. This effect, and its subsequent expression of Lazuli's raw honest emotions was only impressed upon by the way the girl's shoulder-length blonde locks framed her soft face, the shadows playing across the smooth plains vamping the almost ethereal glow of Lazuli's eyes. Goku found that his heart seemed to skip every other beat as his throat closed around every breath he attempted to take. Never before had the young alien ever experienced another person's emotions on such a scale; it left him speechless.

At least until the boy's instincts seemed to take over, and he leaned away from the imploring beauty. Letting his back rest against the archway that lead to the arena, Goku folded his muscled arms over his chest and wrinkled his nose in distaste at what had just occurred. "...I'll think about it." The monkey-tailed teen bit out, his eyes trained solely on the empty arena. "But you'd better not bring this up again until the tournament is finished; I came here to win, not be drafted into playing hero."

Lazuli's eyes lit with hope at those words, and the blonde offered a deep bow. "Of course, thank you Kakarot, this will mean so much to my village." And with that she was off to visit her twin in the infirmary, even though Goku called out that he hadn't actually accepted the plea to help yet.

 _ **xXx**_

Goku didn't see Lazuli again until her match was called against a frail-looking man whose name seemed to be Nam. Their match came directly after that of Yamcha and the mysterious Jackie Chun. That match had been a fairly quick one though, but afforded Goku the opportunity to finally see the older man in action. Going off what Krillin had managed to glean about Jackie's skills Goku found he had to agree; there wasn't a single move wasted, no over extension or exhausted power. The man in the black fighter's robes moved with precision and practice, a true practitioner of the arts, and someone Yamcha stood zero chance against.

The match ended with Jackie Chun being declared the winner by knocking Yamcha out of the ring, ending the former bandit's plans woo Bulma with his winnings. Something the younger fighter seemed to realize immediately as Goku had seen his eyes swiftly search out the blue-haired beauty...only to find her talking to another girl standing beside her in the crowd. Something inside the monkey-tailed teen couldn't help but enjoy the defeated look on Yamcha's face as he slunked his way back to the fighter's box, even as his face remained impassive.

However that was then, and this was now. Goku watched as first the man Nam walked out into the ring, followed by Lazuli, who locked eyes with the boy even as she moved out to face her opponent. Goku decided to give the girl a swift nod of good luck, although if asked about it later he would deny it.

Lazuli had offered her own nod in return to Kakarot's offer of luck in silent thanks before she finished her silent trek towards the tournament arena, where she stood only feet away from her fully grown opponent. _'I'm gonna kill Lapis for talking me into this.'_ The blonde thought as she settled into a basic fighters stance she'd seen from television. Across from her, Nam simply stood tall as the announcer called for the match to begin.

Unlike her brother, Lazuli chose to use her brain in battle rather than go all in swinging. As such, the blonde only stared down the brown-skinned man a few feet before her. "I suggest you make the first move, because otherwise we'll be here all day." Lazuli called out.

"I cannot; it would be unsportsmanlike to not give you a chance at victory. As once I begin, there is but one path for you...defeat." Nam responded, his eyes _closed_ of all things!

This pinched at Lazuli's nerves a bit, but unlike her brother the pretty blonde knew it was always best to keep a cool head when faced with the unknown. So instead of rushing in out of anger, Lazuli carefully shuffled around her still opponent until she was standing behind him; it was here that the female twin made her move. Breaking into a run Lazuli quickly closed the gap between herself and Nam, but just as she drew within striking distance of the man's longer limbs the girl pushed off with her leading foot to leap over to the left-hand side. This allowed her to narrowly miss being smashed by a donkey-kick from the turban wearer, and gave her the chance to capitalize on the opening it left behind. Lazuli made a mad dash to try and land a punch against Nam's open ribs, but was batted away when the man hopped with his single planted foot, twisted over her attack, and kicked Lazuli away.

The young beauty managed to right herself and land safely, but the moment her feet touched down on the arena floor Nam was right behind her with a swift chop, that he aimed at her neck in an attempt to knock her unconscious. Knowing there was no time to block Lazuli instead threw her shoulder in the way and took the blow with it. A definitive _'crack'_ could be heard as the bone was broken, followed immediately by a cry of pain from the young girl. However Lazuli didn't have time to concentrate on _that_ pain, because Nam immediately followed this up with a sharp kick to the center of her back which sent her flying, and then tumbling after she collided with the tiled floor.

Scrapes that dribbled crimson tears littered the pretty blonde's face while the pain of swiftly forming bruises erupted across the vast canvas of Lazuli's slender body. The worst of which was the heavily damaging one that was building across the space between her shoulder blades. Yet none of this mattered more than the nearly blinding pain that radiated from Lazuli's shoulder area. Even a tender shifting of those bones sent arcs of pain shooting straight to the female twin's brain, forcing her to grit her teeth in agony. This fact only brought to light one very important bit of knowledge; one that Lazuli had already been prepared for, but the truth stung just the same. She was going to lose.

Going into this, and agreeing with her brother's idea, Lazuli had no illusions of how the tournament would play out like Lapis' had. The teenage blonde knew that she and her dark-haired twin were no match for fighters who spent hours, days, and _months_ training specifically for the Tenkaichi Budokai. Especially not with nothing but their raw, untrained talent for fighting to back them up. In fact, Lazuli was shocked she and her brother had even made it past the preliminary rounds! _'But I guess we were only gonna get one miracle today.'_ She thought bitterly as her beautiful blue eyes took in the thin, robed man standing before her; he could at least open his eyes! That was what irked Lazuli the most about her match, the fact that her opponent didn't even feel the need to look at her to defeat her. It soaked the burning coals within her to the point her simmering anger built into a raging inferno. She _would_ make that fool open his eyes, make him acknowledge her, before the match was through!

It was with this renewed vigor that Lazuli went on sprinting at Nam, her broken bones shoved to the darkest corners of her mind and the pain drowned out by waves of adrenaline and anger. Not even bothering to keep track of her breathing Lazuli charged forward, until she was within reach of her copper-skinned opponent's hands. Just as he expected Nam lanced one of his hands forward in an effort to catch her with a knife-hand strike, but Lazuli ducked it and went low. Falling into the shoulder that wasn't broken, the young blonde shoved that soft slope into the arena floor and rolled over it to get inside Nam's guard. Coming up onto a single knee Lazuli threw her and out in a ferocious punch, only to seethe as it was blocked by her opponent's open palm. However this didn't stop the girl, and instead Lazuli twisted her body around on the floor to execute a sweep-kick that, while it didn't catch the man, forced him to let go of her hand. Such a thing allowed Lazuli to spring into a rising uppercut once her spin was finished, one that was backed by the momentum of her previous maneuver and actually managed to succeed in landing across Nam's pointed chin!

A deep grunt of pain followed the man's cry of surprise, and Lazuli had just enough time to bask in the glorious fact that she'd made her opponent look at her before the man retaliated with a swift but fierce palm-strike to her stomach. One that held such power that the pretty blonde was sent sailing across the arena...and out of the ring.

"Oh! And despite her fierce last ditch efforts, Lazuli has been knocked out of the ring by a devastating blow by Nam, and had her journey in this tournament cut short. With this Nam is the winner, and will be advancing to the semi-finals!"

While the crowd around her cheered and clapped however, Lazuli was busy fighting back the pain that filled every fiber of her being while laying prone in the soft grass that bordered the arena. This physical pain, coupled with the emotional pain of letting down her village, had the blonde girl breathing heavy breaths in an effort to stem the tears building behind her eyes. So lost in her devastation, that Lazuli didn't even notice when the medics hauled her onto a gurney and began carrying her away. Nor did she see the way Kakarot looked at her as she was carried past him.

As he watched the clearly distraught girl being taken away Goku silently promised that he would visit with Lazuli after his own match, and speak with her again about the possibility of him returning to the blonde's village to lend them his strength.

 _'Besides,'_ the spiky-haired alien thought as his name was called for the final match. _'It's not as if I'll have much else to do after this is all over; and it may just prove to be a decent challenge anyway.'_

Walking into the arena Goku's thoughts on Lazuli and her earlier plea fell away as he got his first good look at the first opponent to truly stand in his way of becoming the World Champion. Giren, if his memory served correctly, turned out to be a large dragon-like creature with dark-blue scales and an almost acid green underbelly. Two large wings stretched out from his back, and beady little black pupils stared out of large, white eyes. Goku also took note of the fiercely sharp teeth and claws that the walking reptile possessed, as well as Giren's thick meaty tail that lumbered behind him. All in all, Goku found his first real opponent to be a bit...underwhelming.

"Let the final match of the quarter finals...BEGIN!" The announcer called out excitedly, drawing forth a vast wave of eager cheers and thunderous applause.

A midst it all, Giren and Goku stared each other down; one thoughtful, the other almost seeming bored. Goku had taken a lax fighting stance, making sure not to leave himself completely open but not putting in the effort to be fully aware of the enemy in front of him. Giren on the other hand looked as if he were trying to solve a puzzle, finally choosing to voice his confusion after another moment of silence.

"So what, did you take one look at me and freeze in fear? I watched your matches in the preliminary rounds, and remember more than a few fights that you kicked things off pretty quickly. Could it be that big, bad Giren has the poor monkey boy ready to run with his fuzzy wuzzy tail between his legs?" Giren finished his taunt with a boisterous laugh, his large belly shaking with mean-spirited mirth as he threw his head back to let it out.

Unfortunately for the large reptilian anthro this meant he didn't see the way Goku's eyes narrowed in focus, or the sly smirk that tugged at his lips. Shifting his body quickly, the spiky-haired alien boy was soon springing off his back foot and shooting towards Giren with his elbow cocked back. Burying that thick bone into his opponent's belly, Goku was rewarded with the sound of Giren choking on his own laughter before snarling in pain as the young fighter quickly replaced his elbow with a left jab. Feeling the way his fist sunk into the talking dragon's underbelly Goku made sure he freed it quickly, so as to avoid getting caught by the big-boned reptiles absorbent flesh. Following this though Goku found himself needing to duck, as Giren seemed to recover quickly enough to swing his heavy tail at the boy.

Goku found himself impressed with how fast his lumbering opponent seemed capable of moving, even if it was slower than the monkey-tailed youth knew he himself could go. However Goku found himself content not to use his full power just yet, and instead toy with Giren so as to better test his own strength. _'We'll see if I can beat him with only a quarter of my full strength.'_

With his personal limit set, Goku dodged back out of Giren's reach as the large dragon-like creature reached out to lash at him with his claws. Yet the boy's opponent didn't stop there. Goku's eyes danced with intrigue as he ducked and weaved out of the way as Giren's large hands whipped about wildly in an attempt to land even a single blow. In an apparent effort to catch the spiky-haired youth off-guard Giren even resorted to working his tail into the varying combinations that he sent at the younger fighter. These attempts were thwarted however by the fact that Goku just seemed far too fast for the oaf of a dragon.

Something, Goku could see, that was making Giren very angry.

"Why don't you hold still monkey-boy!? All this jumping around, like a circus animal, all you're doing is delaying the inevitable; I _will_ get my hands on you, and when I do it isn't going to be pretty!"

"In that case," Goku taunted back as he moved to twist away from another swipe at his chest. "I think it's better that I keep up my _performance_ , don't you? After all, an animal as rare as me, it'd be a shame if I let myself be extinct!" Finishing his retort Goku went ahead and actually grabbed a hold of Giren's tail the next time it came around to try and knock him aside, his small but powerful fingers wrapping around the meaty appendage like steel bands before he gave a sharp jerk, which lifted a stunned Giren off his heavy feet and into the air where Goku then proceeded to _spin_ the dragon-like fighter around!

Around and around the two fighters spun; Giren roaring for the smaller of the pair to put him down. It must have been the fifth or sixth turn before Goku complied with his opponent's wish and sent him tumbling through the air. Unfortunately, Giren's wings proved more than just for show when he used them to keep himself from being rung out. Heavy gusts of wind formed with every beat of those thick, leathery wings while a superior sort of smirk edged its way onto the ferocious reptile fighter's snout.

"Aw, too bad, you were _so_ close to ringing me out too." Giren broke out into a barking sort of laugh this time before managing to continue. "And now that you've made me mad there's no way you're ever going to defeat me; you should have given up when you had the chance!" The lumbering dragon-like fighter's eyes narrowed dangerously into slits as veins of red crept inward from the surrounding whites. Fangs and claws sharpened and grew in thickness as well as length, and everybody watching could see the way the reptilian anthro's body seemed to bulge even heavier with added muscle; even Giren's tail thickened to such a degree that there was no way Goku's last trick would work a second time.

Something flared in the back of Goku's brain right before he lost sight of Giren. However he didn't get any time to analyze what it was before he was struck by the aforementioned fighter's overly large fist. Those thick, scaly knuckles dug into the flesh of Goku's cheek before the force of the blow sent him rocketing off of his feet and careening through the air. Trying to right himself the spiky-haired alien caught the barest hint of wings flapping before he felt what he was sure to be Giren's tail smacking him hard in the center of his back. Gritting his teeth in both pain as well as anger, Goku tensed every muscle in his body after being struck and managed to regain control of his limbs enough so that he was ready to block the devastating elbow that came at him the next time Giren appeared.

Catching the talking reptile's cumbersome strike with both hands Goku was surprised to find that he very nearly couldn't hold it! The moment his palms met with the rigid bone, Goku immediately poured more of his strength into his muscles to keep it from crushing his fingers against his skull; the brute's physical prowess matched that of the Ox-King!

However instead of frighten Goku, this knowledge only got the boy's blood pumping that much faster, that much _hotter_. The fools in the preliminary rounds had posed little to no challenge for the young alien martial artist, and not since Roshi had Goku truly felt tested in his strength. So, using fifty percent of what he knew was his full strength, the monkey-tailed fighter threw aside Giren's elbow and moved swiftly into the dragon's guard to deliver a powerful knee to the stomach. Having thrown his leg at such an intense velocity, Goku found himself shocked that all it did was cause Giren to stop in his tracks; there was no overpowering of the larger fighter, nor animated backward stumble. Giren simply let out a pained 'oof', and hunched forward slightly.

Yet this did not deter the younger, alien fighter for long and instead only added to his excitement. Reacting quickly Goku followed up that knee with double jabs, before finishing with a swift uppercut that caught the spiky-haired youth's opponent clean in the chin.

Through it all Goku's keen eye watched Giren's reactions to his attacks, and the boy with the monkey tail was impressed to find that the mighty dragon-like creature flinched upon impact, but otherwise seemed fine. _'Good,'_ Goku thought as he went to duck around for a shot at Giren's back, _'I am causing damage. He's just tougher than before so it's harder to tell.'_

And yet just as the wild-haired martial artist made this deduction his reptilian foe seemed to have had enough with being knocked around. Faster than Goku had time to react to, Giren turned sharply at the waist, and delivered a debilitating elbow down and crashed it into the crown of the thirteen-year-old boy's skull. Goku's vision filled with white as pain exploded all across his cranium, and his body hitched before slumping the boy down on his hands and knees. However Giren didn't seem satisfied with just this; as shown by how he literally _punted_ Goku across the arena with a quickly followed kick to the monkey-tailed boy's backside. Goku went flying and tumbling through the air, only to be stopped short as Giren appeared in his aerial path and stopped him short with a large meaty fist to the face!

What happened next surprised not only Goku, but the rest of the crowd as well. Because instead of allowing the young teen the chance to fly off again from momentum, Giren quickly opened his clawed hand and wrapped his thick fingers around Goku's face before swinging him down and _slamming him_ into the arena floor! A serious dent made itself known in the tiles integrity as a large series of fissures arced out from underneath the downed youth's aching back. However this didn't prove to be the most surprising thing; it was what the dragon-like fighter did next that had everyone watching shriek in alarm.

"I've enjoyed this little game kid, but I think now it's time I showed you why they tell you to never poke a sleeping dragon! But don't worry, I'll only hit you witth my next attack hard enough to give you a permanent sunburn; _Fiendish Flamethrower!_ " What followed was a moment of Giren opening his maw wide, his razor sharp fangs glistening with thick coats of saliva, and Goku noticing the briefest flicker of a light in the creature's mouth reminiscent of a flint spark, before a burst of hot orange fire came barreling out of Giren's mouth and crashing down directly atop young Goku's body entirely.

Heat licked across Goku's body as the flaming tsunami washed over him. Fiery tongues lapped at his skin, sizzling and warming his flesh to a degree he wasn't used to, and scorching his clothes which slowly began to give out under the intense punishment. With his dark eyes closed tight, Goku could _feel_ the way his gi was slowly drying out and crumbling under the barrage of flame that assaulted the delicately woven thread. A midst the whirlwind of orange fire Goku frowned; he had liked this gi.

However all thoughts like these were brushed aside when the pinned alien boy's ear caught the very familiar scream of one Bulma Briefs. "Goku! Hey, Mr. Announcer, isn't that against the rules!? That overgrown handbag is cooking my friend alive out there!"

The announcer's voice filled the air for the first time in what felt like hours, as he stammered a reply to what Goku was sure to be an irate blue-haired girl. "U-Unfortunately, Miss, it's not. Giren's flames are a product of his own physical ability, and as such are legally allowed within tournament restrictions. As well, so long as he does not kill young Goku then Giren is well within his rights to use those flames; it's all in the waver the young boy signed upon entering the tournament, I'm sorry."

Even with the whooshing of flames filling his ears Goku still heard the literal growl that superseded Bulma's next words; it made him smile despite the annoying itch that the flames had given him. "Oh, you're _going_ to be sorry if anything happens to Goku you out-of-a-box blonde, do you have _any idea_ who I am!? I am _Bulma Briefs_ , and I'll have this whole tournament thing shut down permanently if I wind up carrying my friend out of here in a body bag!"

Goku decided that this was as good a time as any to prove that he was alright. So, reaching out his hand, the pinned youth took a strong hold of what he assumed was Giren's pointer finger...and proceeded to break it with a harsh _'snap'_. The sound was heard in the brief lull that came after Bulma finished speaking, and even managed to overcome the roaring of the flames that had just been pelting Goku nonstop. However this was ground to an instant halt as Giren's head shot up into the air, and a loud cry of pain dowsed whatever fire he had left in his belly.

" _ **RRRAAAAAAAWWWWWRRRR!"**_

However Goku didn't stop there. The very instant Giren snatched his large hand away, the downed alien boy delivered a powerful kick to the talking dragon's kneecap. At full strength, the monkey-tailed fighter hadn't doubted for a second that he'd hear the sweet sound of cartilage giving out under the weight of his foot. And he wasn't disappointed. With a sickening _'crunch'_ Giren's beefy leg seemed to go completely limp, forcing the creature himself to tumble onto his remaining good knee for support while he howled even louder than before in agony. Sadly for the once mighty beast, this placed his snout directly in Goku's line of attack, leaving the pain riddled fighter open for another attack; something Goku made sure to take advantage of.

What came next was the definitive victory shot, as Goku wound back his fist before sending it forward like a speeding bullet and ramming his knuckles clean against Giren's snout. The resulting kickback sent the reptilian fighter's head snapping back as his nostrils gushed blood, right before the momentum of the attack replayed the earlier scene of someone's feet leaving the arena floor; only this time it was Giren rather than Goku. The larger fighter was in so much agony however in comparison, that he wasn't even aware of how close he was getting to the edge of the ring until Goku appeared again above him and finished the job by wheeling his leg around into a triumphant roundhouse-kick.

From there it was simply a matter of watching from the edge of the arena as Giren flew out of bounds, and collided painfully with the wall that kept back the audience. This time though, the cracking sounds were merely the evidence that the collision had damaged the integrity of said barrier, and not another one of Giren's bones.

A hush fell over the crowed for a moment after that, but only for a moment, and then the area was filled to the brim with cheers and applause as the spectators looked upon the boy they knew as Kakarot; the unlikely victor of what many believed to be a major mismatch. Even further still, Goku could easily make out Bulma's own cheers as they seemed to overpower even this rowdy bunch. Looking at the blue-haired girl though caused a swelling to fill the young alien's chest again; one he hadn't experienced since the day he'd tried on his suit in her home.

What _was_ that feeling? Was it pride; did it make him feel good to know he'd brought such happiness to his only friend? Goku wasn't sure. And even then he was unable to dwell on it for long, as the feeling of being watched quickly took its place, which had young Goku shift into a tighter form even as the announcer was holding up his hand and declaring him the winner. Yet when the feeling did not vanish, and instead intensified, Goku allowed his dark eyes to take a hidden sweep of the surrounding area. Finding the culprit proved simple, yet upon learning their identity a sense of confusion soon filled the boy's mind, and had him wondering what they could be looking so intently at him for.

After all, what could Jackie Chun want with _him_?

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: Okay and there's chapter nine! The next one will be all about the semi-finals, and then eleven will be the end of the tournament and the introduction of the Red-Ribbon arc! I know we're still in the Dragon Ball era, and many of you are more interested in getting to the DBZ timeline, but I ask that you please be patient with me. I really want to make this story something interesting, and I just feel that the few things I've added and will continue to add during the next arc will aid in that regard.**_

 _ **Anyway, I'm interested to know what you all thought about this chapter. Did you like it; if so then why? If not, then please let me know so I can better entertain you in future chapters.**_

 _ **I don't have much to say here other than that, so I hope you all enjoyed this latest installment of Warrior Instincts, and look forward to more chapters to come.**_


	10. Chapter 10

_**Warrior Instincts**_

 _ **Ch. 10- Tournament's End; Behold The World's Strongest!**_

 _ **xXx**_

It was another day's worth of rest that was the reward for Goku making past the quarter-finals, one that the monkey-tailed martial artist took with just as much restlessness as the one before. He and Bulma had once again gone out for dinner before the blue-haired girl actually suggested they explore Papaya Island a little before heading back to their rooms. "I just refuse to believe that the only thing interesting around her to do is watch the tournament go on; no offense though, Goku."

"Just so long as you don't take offense to the fact I find the thought of watching you try on clothes to be the most boring thing this planet has to offer." Was the young alien's rebuttal.

However this quip only reminded Bulma of something she'd managed to forget over the course of her time away at University. Namely, the fact that her friend did not consider Earth to be his home. In fact, the teenage genius had hoped the slightly younger boy beside her had at least begun to change his opinion while training under Roshi. Apparently however this was not to be. And this worried Bulma solely because of that haunting message she'd heard come from Goku's pod the day they'd met.

" _ **Wake Up Kakarot, Destroy All Life-Forms..."**_

Thinking about that cold, uncaring mechanical voice telling her only friend to essentially _kill her_ still sent shivers running down the blue-haired beauties' spine. Especially when it's the white noise filling that same awful nightmare Bulma had had during their dragon ball hunt almost a year ago; some nights she could still see the frightening grin that the older alien had worn as he drank from a human's skull.

But Bulma shook her head and cleared away that image from her mind as she mentally scolded herself. _'That's not Goku you dummy, it's...it's...'_ But there inlay the problem; could she truly say that Goku and Kakarot were two separate individuals? She'd heard the boy sign himself up for the tournament using his birth name, but also responded when she called him Goku. Although, thinking about it, Bulma recalled easily enough that she had been gifted what the boy considered a privilege in being able to call him 'Goku'. And it was this reminder that settled the very unfortunate truth in Bulma's stomach; that her friend considered himself to in fact be that alien from space rather than the odd little human his guardian had attempted to make him.

All these thoughts and sour feelings were pushed down though when the boy beside her offered a raised brow in concern while telling her that he'd only been trying to continue her joke about being bored. "I didn't think you'd take it personally."

Bulma gave a weak apologetic grin and halfheartedly waved off the slightly younger boy's concerns. "It's nothing that you did Goku; I just suddenly had a lot on my mind is all. But if you're really not interested in window shopping with me, then maybe we can grab a bite to eat or something? Does that sound good to you?"

"I'm always up for another meal Bulma, but from what I've come to understand about humans, not to mention you in particular, is that you don't need to eat nearly as often and certainly not as much as I do throughout the day. Besides, we just had lunch, so I know you aren't really hungry. If you'd like to do this 'window shopping' then lead the way, as I have nothing better to do and know no one else on this island that I can...I think the expression is 'waste the day with'?"

Bulma gave the spiky-haired martial artist a look, a humorous grin teasing the edge of her lips and an eyebrow raised. "And just where did you hear _that_ from? Because it definitely wasn't from me."

"Roshi has one of those televisions that you showed me back during our first dragon ball hunt, and I found myself catching bits of the shows on it whenever Krillin used it in the afternoons after training." Then Goku's own brow crinkled in annoyance as he went on to say, "Although, some of the things he got up in the middle of the night to watch have shown me that the cueball is just as perverted as the old fool, he just hides it."

"You mean Krillin?" The beautiful teenage genius sputtered. "But he seemed so sweet back at Capsule Corp., are you sure?"

The pair talked all the way back to the hotel, their minds turning from thoughts of going out and doing something, to simply enjoying each others company as one another's only friend on the island. Once they returned Bulma coaxed Goku into going with her to the pool, and asked him to wait for her while she went back up to her room and changed.

"And don't even think about going into the water without me." The bluenette playfully scolded before scurrying away, leaving her dark-haired friend to stand at the edge of the pool.

Goku didn't have anything to offer as a retort, and once Bulma disappeared from view he then had nothing to really occupy his attention, so he simply let his onyx orbs roam lazily around the expanse of the outdoor swimming area. The young alien had just turned his eyes from the neatly trimmed hedges around the fence, to the clear blue water when a female voice he _hadn't_ expected drew his attention.

"I've gotta say, I didn't quiet peg you for the swimming type Kakarot."

It was Lazuli. The blonde girl was standing, hip cocked and eyebrow raised, in a modest one-piece bikini. Several inches of her velvety skin were on display despite her swim-wear's area of conservation, and her hair was once again pulled into a short pony-tail to expose her slender neck, however Lazuli's jaw-dropping looks took a hit by way of the sling being used to keep her newly reset shoulder in place.

And while most boys his age would be more interested in the small amount of cleavage that the blonde's bikini teased, Goku found himself eyeing the very thing most would say was the ugliest thing about the girl. "I guess the fact that you're here, and wearing that sling, means that the medical bay let you out? How is your shoulder Lazuli?"

"It hurts if I'm not careful, but it'll heal. I have to say though, for such a scrawny looking guy, that Nam sure packs a punch in those skinny arms of his. I mean, I've taken my fair share of lumps back home, but I don't think anyone's ever _fractured_ anything on me before."

Goku watched as his newest acquaintance gingerly touched the shoulder being kept in place by a sling, his eyes focused as he tried to imagine just what it would feel like to have his bones broken, before finally speaking again. "That's because you've never truly faced a desperate man during his hour of need."

Lazuli looked back at the dark-haired fighter in front of her with a look of bewilderment, the blonde's head cocking a bit to the side as she questioned what he meant. "I don't think the guy was really all _that_ worried I might beat him, though I appreciate the vote of confidence—"

"That's not what I meant," Goku cut her off. "I'm not sure what it is, but your opponent entered this tournament for a much more personally important reason than just becoming this world's strongest. I could see it in his eyes, in the way he moved, that man truly believes that winning this tournament is the _only_ way to achieve his goal; whatever it may be. His attacks were quick, but sloppy. What he obviously lacked in practiced skill, the guy made up for with his speed and obviously stronger build; even if he does seem no more powerful than a twig in the sand."

"You could tell all that from the few moments you saw him in the ring?" Lazuli asked, impressed.

"No," Goku shook his head. "He was one of the fighters I've been studying since the beginning, in case I had to fight him later on. His need almost manifests itself in _waves_ , it's so bad, and it will be his undoing tomorrow."

Now the pretty blonde's look shifted from impressed to teasing curiosity. "Oh, you sound _so_ sure of yourself Kakarot. What makes you so confident you'll win?"

"It's simple; because my desire to win, to be this world's strongest, far outweighs whatever sad story the man known as Nam may possess. I want to win for the sake of winning, Lazuli, nothing more and nothing less."

Hearing this, Lazuli's face shifted into a look of curiosity and concern. "You mean, you're only goal is to be the strongest fighter? You don't fight for anything else, any _one_ else?"

"A person's reasons for doing anything don't need to be rooted in any sort of storybook theatrics." Goku answered back, folding his arms over his chest. "My desire to win is the same as most of the other competitors in this tournament, you and your brother being one of the few exceptions, and even then you've learned that winning the prize money wasn't your only option because I've agreed to come back with you to break whatever hold this 'Muscle Tower' has on your village. So I see nothing wrong with wanting to be the strongest as my sole motivation for competing."

"But what about _after_ the tournament Kakarot?" Lazuli pressed, her eyebrows shooting up towards her bangs. "I mean sure, you've agreed to help my village, but once that's done what do you intend to do, what drives you everyday to get up and keep living?"

Goku laughed a little before responding. "That's a bit deep for a friendly chat, how did we get here from talking about my upcoming match?"

"Because, this whole time we've been talking not once have I seen any true spark of life in your eyes Kakarot. It's like you live for the sake of existing, and nothing else. And I just...well I thought that seemed so unlike the person I've met at this tournament."

Onyx stared into sapphire as Goku held Lazuli's gaze for a silent moment before movement behind the blonde drew his attention. Looking over her bare shoulder, the monkey-tailed martial artist saw that Bulma had returned from changing. Sighing, the spiky-haired teen turned his eyes back to the other girl standing in front of him and offered one last reply before walking away. "A word of advice? Before you go off assuming you know anything about me, pay better attention."

With that the young semi-finalist walked past Lazuli and met Bulma half way from the entrance to the pool area. Standing back and watching the boy move away from her, the blonde stared after Kakarot another second before her brow furrowed just slightly and she silently vowed to take up his challenge.

 _'I will figure you out, Kakarot, and I will find out what it is you live for.'_

It was as she was walking out that Lazuli caught Bulma whispering to the monkey-tailed fighter about her. "Wasn't she the girl from the tournament? What'd she want with you Goku?"

"Nothing really, I just agreed to help her with a problem later is all, and she wanted to make sure I wasn't going to back out on her."

Hearing that, despite her earlier interrogation, Kakarot was still willing to return to Penguin village with her and save them caused Lazuli's shoulders to slump in relieved tension. This knowledge allowed the pretty blonde to exit the pool area, and return to her room, with a slight smile of hope. Hope for her home's future, and the chance to learn more about the mysterious monkey-tailed boy.

The day of rest went by faster than either Goku or Bulma realized, and before they knew it it was time for the next set of matches. The pair headed back to the arena, where they were again separated and both watched as Krillin tried but ultimately failed to best Jackie Chun. And while many would voice that the bald youth put up a good fight, the spiky-haired contender knew better; Krillin's opponent had only been getting warmed up. However, watching the two martial artists face off revealed one very important piece of information to Goku, one that got his blood pumping and boiling hot.

Jackie Chun was Roshi.

Unsure of how the man had managed to get hair on his head so quickly, Goku was still certain of his deduction based off not only the way Jackie fought but interestingly enough the way he smelled. Spending so much time around Roshi, the young alien had come to recognize that the elderly martial artist had a very unique scent about him; a pungent odor of shell wax and moth balls. This particular combination was one that Goku had never encountered anywhere other than in the presence of his instructor, and this was _after_ he'd traveled vast miles with Bulma in search of the dragon balls.

Add to this the very precise and fluid way the man moved as he faced off against Krillin, in a style of fighting that the observant alien could tell found roots in the Turtle-Hermit style, was all Goku needed to fully believe that Jackie Chun was really Roshi in disguise.

Now, what Goku _couldn't_ figure was the motivations behind why his martial arts instructor would undergo such a ruse, but he only paid that train of thought a fleeting attempt before the thought of facing Roshi in the finals filled his head. The opportunity to best the person who'd handed him his first true taste of defeat excited the youthful alien boy, and it wasn't long before his every muscle twitched in excitement and he himself filled with a hunger the likes of which Goku had only ever truly experienced during his first spar with Krillin. Only this time, instead of a gradual build up, Goku's lust for battle crashed into him like a wave. It filled him to near bursting, and had the boy practically shaking in excitement. His head grew hazy, but there was a strange sense of alertness and _precision_ with how Goku saw the world now. It was with these enhanced senses that the monkey-tailed martial artist heard his name get called and he walked towards the ring.

What came next was a short but brutal beat down. The announcer called the beginning of the match and before Nam even had a chance to tell Goku to quit, the younger fighter had shot forward like a speeding bullet and buried his fist into the man's stomach. The force of the blow knocked the skinny turban wearer off of his feet, and almost had him crumpling to the ground if not for Goku's continued assault.

Using his incredible speed Goku rushed around to his opponent's back and dead-legged Nam, forcing the older man down onto one knee where the spiky-haired youth then proceeded to jerk his head back and bring down an elbow to crush the man's nose. Blood splattered into the air, a bit of it splashing back onto Goku's face, but the young alien fighter hardly registered this and instead let the coppery smell of the red life liquid further fuel his lust. Reacting quickly, Goku shoved his taller opponent forward while Nam was crying out in agony so that he was on his hands and knees. From there the boy gave a vicious grin and, twisting, brought a powerful kick up that landed firmly against the thin man's protruding ribcage.

The sickening sound of bones breaking under pressure filled the open air as everyone around the ring watched silently, unbelieving, as Goku carried on pummeling his older opponent.

Back in the ring Goku had just finished launching Nam into the air, and was now pushing off the ground in order to follow the man into the sky. Then, after gaining enough altitude so that he floated just above the hovering adult fighter, Goku wheeled himself into a spin and dropped the heel of his foot down onto the very center of Nam's back. However with his mind in a frenzy, the spiky-haired alien youth didn't notice that he'd forgotten to hold back, and so the resulting smash attack actually _broke_ Nam's spine!

The man himself felt the explosive pain in a sudden burst, his face twisting into a mask of pure pain and torment before his body shut down on him and he lost consciousness.

He didn't even feel when he smashed back down onto the arena floor.

When Goku returned to the ground he was still consumed by his need for battle, and so he didn't hear the announcer when he called the match. With his heart pumping a mile a minute, and the blood rushing in his ears, all the monkey-tailed boy could make out was the call of his name, and even that began to grow distorted as he was further swallowed up by an insatiable thirst for _more_! More fighting, more carnage, more bloodshed, more _destruction_!

Because he was Kakarot, destroyer of all life on the planet called earth!

Or at least, he was until another voice filled his head. "Goku, stop! You're gonna kill him!"

The cry came from somewhere out in the vast sea of white noise that was Kakarot's heated blood. It was a feminine voice, one that spoke loudly but was full of concern and worry, yet tinted by fear. It was a voice Kakarot was sure he recognized, and this caused him to pause a moment in his quest for destruction. _'Goku? Who was Goku?'_

Kakarot whipped his head around, pulling his glossy, dark eyes away from the lump of battered flesh heaped before him and looked for the source of that voice. For some reason, the bewildered alien _knew_ he'd heard it before, but...that couldn't be right. Because the only voice Kakarot had ever heard was the one in the back of his head, the one that echoed loudly even in his dreams.

The one that told him to wake up, and _destroy_.

And yet, there was something about this new voice that conjured strange images in Kakarot's mind. There was a figure, sleek and slender, with eyes that shone bright even in the fog of the alien boy's mind. This... _life-form_ , whoever they were, then appeared alongside someone who _looked_ like him through a series of flashes that Kakarot nearly couldn't believe were real. The thing that caused him to doubt that the memories were fake was the very real fact that the same life-form in those sequences was currently jumping over some sort of barrier and _running towards him_!

Instinct reared its head and Kakarot's body shifted into a tense battle stance, but then when the stranger stopped cold and looked at him with a mask of pain the monkey-tailed youth felt himself relax almost immediately, even though _he_ tried to keep up his guard.

"G-Goku, it's me, it's Bulma." The life-form known as _Bulma_ reached a single hand out, the other clutched tightly to their chest. "Hey kid, look, the other guys down and you won. The match is _over_. Y-You can stop now Goku; _please_ , you're...you're really starting to scare me."

Kakarot wasn't sure what it was, whether the look in the stranger's eyes or the tremble in her voice, but _something_ needled at him when the one who called themselves 'Bulma' spoke. His body jerked when they took a step forward, and there was twang in his heart as 'Bulma' mentioned being afraid of him. But that didn't make sense to Kakarot, because weren't they _supposed to_ fear him? He was there to destroy every life-form on the planet, including this 'Bulma'...so then why did that thought make his stomach drop?

Before the confused young alien could really get a grip on his befuddled mental state however, Bulma quickly closed the remaining gap between them and sank to her knees before enveloping her only friend in a gentle, but desperate hug.

Feeling the way Goku stiffened upon first contact, and catching a glimpse of how his tail bristled and thrashed, hurt Bulma's heart but did nothing to stop her from continuing to try and bring the spiky-haired martial artist back from the brink. The teenage genius easily recalled the last two times something like this happened, but both times were so short that they were just glimpses of Goku's past. Now though, while she wasn't sure what had caused it, Bulma was sure she was truly seeing 'Kakarot' for the first time. And what she saw truly frightened her. Just what sort of place had Goku originally come from, where had he remained this other person then Bulma was sure the human race would have surely been eradicated without 'Kakarot' even batting an eye.

Which was why she had to do whatever it took to bring back her friend, to bring back Goku.

"This isn't you, Goku. You may fight, and I know you're even okay with k-killing, but I know you only do it when you think you have to. You don't kill for fun, _Goku_ , you're a martial artist and a fighter; you're my friend...not a monster! So please, come back from the darkness, and _please_ come back to _me_."

As he listened to the one whose arms he was wrapped in Kakarot couldn't help but pay attention to the warmth that surrounded him as he was cradled in 'Bulma's' arms, nor could he ignore the swelling in his own heart as they called him their 'friend'. There was something about that word, friend, that brought a small smile to Kakarot's face that he could not fight.

 _'But wait, she called me 'Goku', not Kakarot.'_ The young alien thought, his brow furrowing. And then he noticed that he'd referred to Bulma as a 'she', instead of a 'life-form'. This brought with it a memory, one where he could hear Bulma explaining that she was in fact a _girl_ , the female species of the human race. Along with this came a slew of other memories, each one prominently featuring Bulma even if in the back of Kakarot's mind he was sure she wasn't the main focus. And yet, this meant little as the vicious alien youth found himself drowning in the emotions each clip seemed to fill him with; emotions he wasn't even sure he was supposed to know.

Happiness, joy, a sense of freedom that Kakarot had never experienced, and most importantly friendship.

Further and further down Kakarot sank down into the ocean of memories and the feelings they invoked in him, until finally he seemed to pass a rising figure in his mind. One who looked so much like himself, but whose face while stern wasn't cold, and Kakarot watched as this mirror image began to rise higher towards the light while _he_ was enveloped in the blackness once again.

" _B-Bulma."_

Bulma was about ready to start crying, she could feel the tears sting her eyes, when a croaky voice whispered in her ear. It was just her name, but the blue-haired beauty could easily hear that edge of warmth that only Goku ever used; even though she was sure _he_ didn't realize he even used it. This caused her to jerk her head from the shorter boy's muscular shoulder and search his onyx eyes for that sure sign that her friend had returned to her. When she found it, when she saw that spark of mischievous pride that she'd come to see in his stare, the tears in her eyes changed to ones of happiness and Bulma finally allowed them to fall. "Oh, Goku."

The pairs reunion was interrupted only for a moment, with the announcer telling them that while he was glad to know there wouldn't be any death during his tournament, they _did_ need to leave the stage so that the arena could be scrubbed of Nam's blood and time given for Goku to prepare for the finals.

"I thought that I'd be given another full day, like with the preliminary and quarter-final rounds." Goku questioned wearily, his body feeling fatigued after coming down from his battle-lusted high. He didn't get a chance to hear the announcer's response yet though, because right on his heels Bulma spat at the blonde in disbelief.

"My friend just went through a major psychological battle and you want him to be up and ready to fight a measly thirty minutes!? I warned you before about what I'd do to your tournament if my friend got killed, and I'll do just as bad if you don't give him-"

"The time is fine." Goku cut her off, causing his friend to give him a look of disbelief. "The only thing that I ask is you provide me with food before the match."

The blonde announcer lifted his eyebrows in exclamation before he answered, "Oh, that's not a problem kid, there's a cafeteria set up for the participants here that gives them all they can handle. And while the food _is_ pretty standard, no special order type deals unless you have an allergy, I've never heard anyone complain about the way it tastes. How does that sound?"

"Perfect." Was Goku's single-word response as he moved back from Bulma's loose embrace and motioned for the older young man to show him the way.

"B-But Goku!" Bulma cried out as she stood and followed briskly after the monkey-tailed boy. "How can you say that?! You need _rest_ , not just a meal. Please, let me work something out with these people so you can recover, I know how important winning is to you and I'm worried that if you don't take a breather you'll hurt your chances."

Goku just looked over his shoulder at her and told the bluenette, "Trust me when I say that it's not rest I need right now Bulma. Eating is the best thing for me, followed by facing off and beating this 'Jackie Chun' for the title. I can rest enough _after_ the tournament."

As he spoke those last words Bulma noticed the way her friend's eyes hardened, and knew he was being serious. It worried her to know that Goku was really going to go back out there so soon, especially since she'd seen just how good his final opponent was, but Bulma resigned herself to letting the monkey-tailed martial artist believing he knew what was best for himself. After all, with him not being human, Goku could very well be right that all he'd need was a meal and a few minutes to sit back before he was ready for the final rounds.

And so, it was thirty minutes and hundreds of bowls and plates later that found Goku standing face-to-face with Jackie Chun. Or rather, Roshi, from what his nose was telling him. And as he finally got a truly good look at the older fighter it became even more apparent to the young alien that he was indeed about to have a rematch with the Turtle Hermit. Jackie's face was worn and old like Roshi's, and his beady eyes while stern still held the gloss of perversion that Goku would recognize anywhere, even when the elderly fighter wore his famous sunglasses.

Oh yeah, there was no way Goku was going to risk this chance.

"I saw your little episode earlier," the disguised Roshi called out after the match had been called to begin. "I'm sure it took a toll on you; there's no shame in backing down if you're not ready. There'll be other tournaments, ya know."

A smug grin found its way to Goku's face as he shifted into his fighting stance, his muscles tensing and readying for action. "That may be, but how many chances will I honestly get after this to beat _you_ in front of a crowd?"

Goku watched, amused, as Roshi's face morphed into a brief mask of shock before settling back into the calm and concentrated look he was sure to be the man's normal expression. "You really _are_ smarter than the average monkey, eh Kakarot?"

"That's right," the spiky-haired younger fighter replied. "And today I show you that I'm _stronger_ than one too!"

Even a seasoned fighter would have lost sight of Goku as he finally sprung, unleashing fifty percent of his full power upon Roshi right out of the gate. With his sharp eyes the monkey-tailed teen saw the way his instructor was surprised by his speed, and couldn't help grinning as he closed the few feet between them in what felt like an instant to wheel a kick around at the older man. When it struck home against the side of Roshi's head Goku felt his body fill with pride, but this small victory did not cloud his vision as he knew it would take much more than that to defeat the legendary martial artist.

His theory was proven right when Roshi quickly recovered from being struck and went to grab hold of Goku's leg. The younger fighter managed to snatch his outstretched appendage back just in time though, and threw a punch in its place in an effort to check Roshi in the sternum.

Unfortunately Roshi saw it coming, having recovered from being shocked at Goku's impressive speed, and swatted it away before retaliating with a hook of his own. This was followed by a sweep-kick when Goku blocked it, with the combination being finished off by a rising uppercut after the spiky-haired youth managed to step away from _that_. Spinning into an aerial roundhouse Roshi couldn't help smirking under his thick mustache at how much more powerful his student had become over the course of the last few months.

And as Goku jerked his head back to keep from being slammed by the elderly fighter's foot he too couldn't help the grin that seemed to have found a permanent home on his face since the start of the match a moment ago. It seemed like just yesterday that he could barely keep up with Roshi, and yet here was going toe-to-toe with the martial arts master in the middle of an arena, in front of a crowd! This thought started the fire in Goku's gut again and got his blood simmering. Flipping back onto his palms, the younger fighter struck with his feet in an effort to find ground against Roshi's chest, and allowed the momentum to carry him forward when the attempt failed.

Roshi saw the opening and tried to capitalize on it, but was shocked to find his jab caught by his younger opponent's furry, brown tail! Goku's extra appendage wrapped tightly around Roshi's wrist like a steel trap, and the unexpected maneuver shook the elderly martial artist enough that he couldn't manage a defense in time when the owner of said tail snapped out with a swift backwards kick to his chest. However, instead of letting the momentum of the attack carry him away, Roshi saw that his younger opponent had kept him trapped and instead jerked him forward to bury his fist in the older man's stomach.

Goku wasn't too surprised when his punch was caught by Roshi, in fact he almost expected it, so he quickly rewound his tail around his waist and pried his clenched hand free from the elderly martial artist's grasp before ducking a knife strike to his head. Taking a page from the older fighter's book, Goku sprang back up with an uppercut before working himself into a roundhouse-kick. The fact that the back of his knuckles brushed Roshi's hooked nose gave the young alien another burst of pride; one that worked its way into his last attack and helped increase its speed enough so that Roshi was unable to fully dodge out of the way.

White eyebrows shot up to the hairline of Roshi's wig as he too felt the brush that spoke of just how close he'd come to being caught by Goku's uppercut, but then the man's brow crinkled in pain as the younger boy's powerful kick caught him in the chin. Roshi tried to keep himself steady, but Goku's impressive physical strength proved too much for him even with such a glancing blow and he was forced to follow the path of attack and turn his head. It was years of experience and martial arts matches that allowed the ripened fighter to recover quick enough that he was able to catch Goku's next move as he tried to scissor his temples with the blades of his hands. And while he had to duck under a swift kick to the face, Roshi didn't let it shake his composure and retaliated by swinging his younger opponent around a few times before letting him sail through the air.

Goku managed to right himself just in time though and only took a glancing blow from the spin-kick that Roshi delivered upon moving in behind him. Twisting further through the air and around the older fighter's outstretched leg, the monkey-tailed alien youth answered with a fist of his own, only to have his knuckle sandwich denied as Roshi swatted it away from his own face. Goku had just enough time throw his arms into a cross-block before he was sent flying through the air again via his older opponent's own wickedly fast sucker-punch.

Again Roshi tried to take the lead in their fight by catching Goku off his guard but the mustached man just wasn't quick enough, and his attempt was thwarted by the spiky-haired teen blocking the kick he'd thrown with his strong forearm.

Catching Roshi's leg with the same arm he'd blocked it with, Goku raised his other hand into the air and clenched it hard into a fist before bringing it down in an attempt to break the older man's leg. After all, if Roshi couldn't continue the fight, that made _him_ the winner. And there was nothing more important to the young alien at this moment than winning, and having his might recognized. Unfortunately, his plan was foiled when Roshi pushed off with his other foot and worked himself into a mid-air kick that forced Goku to both let go of the captured limb as well as duck to avoid being slammed.

However the younger fighter got a nasty surprise when his foe showed himself to be much more limber than one would assume. Roshi took the momentum of his own attack and used it to work himself into another kick, this time swinging his other leg around and bringing it down _hard_ like an ax onto the crown of Goku's head. The resulting ' _thwack_ ' that could be heard caused many spectators to shiver or flinch back in discontent as they imagined the sort of pain the younger fighter must have felt from such a move.

And unfortunately for Goku, Roshi wasn't satisfied with just landing _one_ attack. Using the teen with the tail's stunned state to his advantage, Roshi came down hard on Goku with a very impressive series of punches that scattered out across his muscled torso and firm stomach. Driving his fist into the younger fighter's abdominal muscles, Roshi poured a bit more power into the punch and used it to lift Goku off of his feet and into the air.

Coughing up spittle and gasping for breath Goku's vision blurred as he went sailing into the sky. This caused him to miss the chance to react when his foe chased after him with a solid knee to the stomach, further aggravating the blossoming bruises already forming over those muscles. Blinding white spots exploded all across the young alien's line of sight then, and left him open for when Roshi locked his fingers in the boy's messy black hair and drove his knee into Goku's face. Blood spurted from the younger martial artists nose as he cried out in anger, and the gi-clad teen used those feelings to push through the red in his vision so that he could catch the hammer-fist that Roshi was about to attempt.

The cross-block Goku used kept him from feeling the full brunt of Roshi's attack, but the power behind the master martial artist's latesst hit _did_ force the monkey-tailed alien back down towards the arena, and once he landed the younger fighter had little time to regain the feeling in his arms before being forced to back-flip out of the way of an incoming aerial kick.

The two fighters stood then, facing each other with stern faces as the announcer called out to the crowd.

"And after an intense first round the competitors seem to be taking a breather; although with how fast both fighters were moving I have no doubt both are starting to feel a little winded. I know _this_ announcer would be. However I think what's really on everybody's mind is whether it'll be youth or experience that wins the day here; will it be young Kakarot or the seasoned Jackie Chun!?"

Ignoring the hoots and hollers of the crowd both Goku and Roshi stared each other down, their eyes trained solely on one another as they both recovered from that first bought of fighting. Goku wiped the blood from his face before calling to his older opponent. "You know, I was expecting this to be a lot more challenging old man, but so far you've...disappointed me."

"Don't get too ahead of yourself Kakarot," was the warned reply. "You've seen what I'm capable of at full power, besides I've barely gotten started and your already out of breath."

Goku's face shifted into a cocky smirk here, one eyebrow raised in confidence. "I'm not tired old man, I'm _eager_. I _know_ you're not fighting me seriously, so I've been trying to push you into using that famous technique of yours; I wanna see the Kamehameha Wave!"

Not for the first time since their match began Roshi's own withered face became a mask of shock and surprise, although it soon turned to one of careful consideration. "I don't think you truly understand what you're asking for there, kid, my full power is nothing to scoff at and the Kamehameha _isn't_ a parlor trick. That technique could very well kill you."

"Well if it does then that just means my destiny was to fall here today, and if it doesn't? Well then it just means I've finally surpassed you, so come on, show me your strength old man!"

With that Goku launched himself at the elderly martial arts master, a fierce burning in his eyes and a wild smile stretching clear across his face. However this time, when his fist smacked against Roshi's forearm the teen with the tail immediately noticed the distinct feel of hard muscle underneath his fist. Goku had just a second to see that his once frail-looking foe was now a miniature mountain of bare-chested muscle before Roshi used his new levels of speed to send him flying with a swift sucker-punch.

Then before he could right himself the young teen found himself bombarded with a flurry of punches and kicks that came too fast for Goku to block! This amazed the spiky-haired fighter as he'd expected Roshi to be significantly slower due to his increase in muscle mass, only to find that there hadn't been any give in either power _or_ speed. One after the other the monkey-tailed martial artist ate knuckle sandwiches aimed at his face as well as his torso before furious uppercut had him bouncing back against the arena floor like a thrown rag doll.

Down on his face Goku lay, battered and motionless while the announcer began the K.O. Count. In the stands Bulma held her breath, eyes filled to the brim with worry as she called out for her friend to stand up, all while the disguised Roshi stood confident in his unleashed full power.

"I'm afraid all your yelling wont do any good girl," the mustached fighter spoke with a sigh. "Your friend bit off more than he could chew when asking to see my maximum, and now defeat is all that's left for him. It's a pity really; he has such potential. Perhaps next time he'll be more cautious of his limits."

"Five!" The announcer called into the microphone in his hand.

" _GET UP GOKU!_ " Bulma cried out, her hands cupped to give her voice an echo as she tried to will her friend to stand. The blue-haired girl's heart thudded painfully in her chest as she looked on at the spiky-haired boy crumpled against the arena floor. Bulma knew how important winning the tournament was to her friend, so to see him in a position where he may actually _lose_ tore her apart as she imagined how such a thing would effect Goku. This ache that the teenage genius carried for her friend laced her voice as she continued to call out to him, hoping with every fiber of her being that he would hear her.

"Eight!" The announcer cried out as he continued the count. "If young Kakarot doesn't get up soon he'll lose the match! Could it be that prodigious youth falls short of experienced skill?"

"Of course; I warned the kid that he should take second place but it seems pride really does come before the fall. Such a pity, but perhaps this will hel teach the young man to be a bit more humble in the future." The disguised Roshi shrugged...only to gape when the image of Goku on the floor seemed to _fade_! There was no time due to his state of surprise for the elderly martial arts master to put up a defense then when the real Goku appeared behind him and lashed out with a leg-sweep and followed through with a vicious snap-kick. However, having retained the use of his full power Roshi _was_ able to twist around in the air and catch his younger opponent as Goku tried to come after him with an elbow strike.

Goku's sharp, excited eyes met with his opponent's narrowed and focused own while the younger fighter's face was stretched into a battle-lusted grin. Sparks of power arced out from the point where Goku's knuckles met Roshi's palm and the sight of this only further excited the young alien. "You talk a big game old man, but you're sadly mistaken if you think I've shown you _my_ full power! That last round was just a warm up; _this_ is where the _real_ fight begins!"

In a move so fast that if you blinked you'd miss it Goku vanished from sight and reappeared directly above his disguised martial arts instructor. Cocking his fist back, the young alien let his attack come hammering down. However with Roshi also using a hundred percent of his own power the elderly fighter was able to follow his students movements now that he was on-guard, and threw a burly forearm up to block it. The sound of flesh smacking against flesh filled the air right before both fighters seemed to disappear again.

What none of the spectators could see was the way Goku ducked under a powerful kick from Roshi or his attempt to counter with a butterfly-kick, only for the older figther to weave around the manuever and try for a shovel-hook to the monkey-tailed teen's liver in an effort to disable him.

The crowed did get to see how Goku stopped that last attack with the use of his tail however, and were even treated to the sight of him swinging himself up with it to bring a fierce flying-kick to a disguised Roshi's face. They all went crazy when the mustached martial artist caught the offending foot and tore his hand free, and they only fell into an even bigger frenzy when the pair blinked out of sight again to resume their high-speed battle.

Using a cross-block Goku managed to stave off his opponent's very forward jab, wincing from the pain of impact, but this didn't deter the younger fighter and he instead growled in his throat before flipping back onto the palms of his hands and unleashing a spring-kick that managed to find purchase in Roshi's sternum. The young alien could see the way his opponent's face contorted from the pain and this only further fueled Goku's drive to try and bring about that reaction again.

Unfortunately for the wild-haired youth's wishes though Roshi _wasn't_ keen on being used as a punching bag and avoided the following elbow strike that came at him by swatting it away. A haymaker was his response, and the much older fighter let out a breath of relief when it hit home at Goku's cheek. Somewhere beyond the blood rushing in his ears the Turtle-Hermit could hear the crowd as they hollered in utter astonishment, but the beefy martial artist payed them not even a second thought as he coiled his body, and sprang after his younger foe.

Blood filled Goku's mouth as he flew threw the air and white spots exploded all across his vision. The power behind that last attack rocked the miniature monkey-boy's center, and he fought his own nasuia in an effort to ready himself for Roshi's follow-up attack. Like the older man he too could just make out the cries of the crowed, but unlike the creator of the Kamehameha there was one voice that reached beyond the white noise to get to him; it was Bulma. Her words of encouragement filled Goku's ears and anchored him to his purpose even as his lust for battle attempted to drive him back into a frenzy, and it gave him enough piece of mind to angle his body towards the arena floor.

Roshi was all set to use a spinning wheel-kick to knock the airborne youth from the ring, but at the last minute he twisted his body into a flip so that he could avoid the rebounded, rising upper-cut that Goku performed. Just barely keeping himself clear of the attack Roshi then landed on his feet and tried for a second haymaker, this time to the back of Goku's head.

"You'll need to try harder than that old man!" The monkey-tailed martial artist taunted as he tilted his head and let the large fist brush past his cheek, before sending a swift back-kick behind him to catch his foe in the stomach now that he was off balance. Hearing the satisfying sound of Roshi sputtering in pain Goku quickly spun around and slammed a back-fist into the older man's cheek before leaing up to land a horizontal jump-kick to the disguised fighter's chest to send him flying back.

However instead of following after him, Goku stood his ground and waited for Roshi to catch himself, using the time to steady his breathing and build up his energy for what would be the final act. Drawing in a deep breath, the wild-haired fighter called back to the feeling of his transformation and the power it granted him in an effort to immitate it. He attempted to recall the way his mescles felt as they swelled with primal energy, and the heavy tingle that had spread throughout his tail as he stared up into the moon. When he felt he was ready, Goku opened his eyes again and found Roshi staring back at him with a determined, but tired face.

This was it, they both knew it.

"I'll commend you Kakarot for pushing me this far," Roshi called out to the boy standing across the arena from him. "It's been a very long time since someone has pushed me to use my full strength, and even longer since I've had to _try_ while going all out. But unfotunately, as fun as this has been, it's time I end it. This next attack will finish you."

Keeping his own eyes locked on the disguised martial arts master, Goku matched him motion-for-motion as they both slid into the infamous stance of the Kamehameha Wave. The smirk that had settled on his youthful face never once having left the monkey-boy's lips, he answered back full of confidence. "You may have invented the technique old man, but you and I both know you don't have enough power left in those old bones to beat me now. You're tired, and your lack of practice is catching up to you; it's not me who's finished... _it's you!_ "

Both martial artists cupped their hands, and in an eerie sense of synchronized voice began to chant.

"Ka..." Roshi's muscled bulged and veins quivered as years of latent power began to rush through his system.

"Me..." Goku's eyes narrowed to near slits as he called upon the flames of his inner beast, and let its mighty roar thunder in his ears.

"Ha..." Both fighters knew that there would only be one of them left standing after this clash, and were trying to pull off every limiter they had in an effort to best their opponent. Pride vs patience, Goku's prodigious power vs Roshi's years of hard-fought experience.

"Me..." Energy hummed, and buzzing of each martial artist's energy attack washed over even the announcer's shocked awe as he exlained to the speechless crowd just what it was they were about to witness. But even this, and the heat of the Kamehameha in his hands, Goku could still here Bulma cheer him on...could still hear the cry of his father as the man was incinerated.

And these things gave him strength.

" _ **HAAAA!"**_

Brilliant, blinding light filled the arena as electric blue and shaded violet raced through the air only to ultimately crash against each other in a thunderous boom of power. The two beams clashed violently, with each one trying their hardest to overtake the other and swallow it whole, all the while Goku and Roshi stood on opposite ends and strained to pour every ounce of power they had into their final attack. Both fighters grit their teeth in effort as they felt their muscles strain under the pressure of holding back the others Kamehameha Wave, the arena floor beneath them shook and rumbled from the pulsating waves that came off the twin beams of nearly neon color, all while the large crowed around them had since erupted into a fanatical excitement as they cheered for who they wanted to see come out the winner.

It felt like an eternity before Goku began to feel his feet start to slide backwards against the arena floor. His muscles felt as if they were on fire as he tried to dig his heels into the tile below. Sweat poured down his forehead and stained his gi top, which had actually began to give way under the intense ripples of energy that came rolling off his Kamehameha Wave. Pain pounded away at the inside of the young fighter's mouth at how hard he clenched his teeth, but through it all he refused to give in. And instead of feeling worried about losing he got _angry_ ; angry at his own shortcomings, at how he should be stronger than this!

But as he watched his Kamehameha begin to lose itself inside the larger beam of bright blue that was Roshi's, Goku knew he needed to think of something, _anything_ or he really would be defeated.

When Roshi finally saw his younger opponent's energy attack give out under the weight of his own power he couldn't help but feel relief at the sight; the elderly martial artist was quickly reaching his limit, and if the struggle had continued he wasn't sure he could hold out. So after his blast finally swallowed the monkey-tailed teen's own Roshi quickly closed off the remainder of his energy and allowed his Kamehameha to fade, with his max-power form swiftly following. Out of breath and drenched in sweat from the effort of victory the Turtle-Hermit listened for his name to be called as the victor.

 _'I can only hope that this defeat simply pushes young Kakarot to get stronger, rather than shatter that pride of his. I really would hate to see such a promising young fighter give it all up over a single loss.'_

It was while Roshi was trying to settle his still-racing heart that he listened to the announcer speak. "Well ladies and gentlemen, from the looks of it we seem to have a winner by knockout—wait, young Kakarot seems to have managed to escape Jackie Chun's Kamehameha Wave! I-I don't see him anywhere-!"

"WHAT!?" The elderly fighter's jaw dropped at this bit of news and he whipped his head all around in an effort to find the boy he _thought_ he'd defeated. "T-This can't be, how did that little runt manage to escape from _that_!?"

Left, right, behind and even up in the sky the disguised Roshi looked search of his younger foe. The elderly fighter's beady eyes strained to see any glimpse of Goku while his ears felt ready to pop with how hard the Turtle-Hermit attempted to catch any sound of the monkey-tailed boy's approach. However with the thumping of his own heart drumming wildly in his auditory canals the old man found he was hard-pressed to hear even his own deep, tired breathing.

It hadn't been a lie when the creator of the Kamehameha told his opponent that it had been years since anyone had pushed him so far, but thoughts such as this brought on flashbacks of those dark, deadly times. Flashbacks of a giant, green _demon_ leering down at him with a malicious smirk began to run through Roshi's mind as he coninued to try and catch any sign of Goku. He could hear that monster's laugh play back in his memory like a wicked, broken record. And the _power_ the fiend had weilded had been unlike anything the man had ever felt! Phantom pains lanced through the martial arts master's bones and he felt a cold sweat start to trickle down his worn and withered body as Roshi began to lose himself in the horrid recollection of his past.

Unfortunately, sinking into these dank, dark waters left Roshi un-guarded and open to his younger opponent's incoming double hammer-fist as the wild-haired alien came down from the clouds with a wide, hungry smile.

Goku had shifted his beam at the last possible second of their struggle and used it to launch himself into the air, where he used his tail to keep him airborne and even lift higher so that he was out of his fellow fighter's sight. Months of training had paid off as Goku's practice of this manuever left him with only a fully ruined gi top and minor scortch marks across his torso from the heat of Roshi's overwhelmingly powerful energy wave. But the teenage alien didn't think about those things right now, no, the only thought running through Goku's brain was that of _victory_!

And as he finally finished his dive, with the sides of his fists bashing down with the remainder of his strength atop Roshi's unprotected crown, Goku knew he had indeed come out the winner.

He was the world's strongest!

 _ **xXx**_

 _ **A/N: A new year means a new chapter! This concludes the Tournament Arc, which I'm actually glad for since it means we're moving into the Muscle Tower Arc and that much closer to the introduction of King Picollo; who, if it hasn't been made apparent yet, is my favorite OG villain next to JR, who I suppose some people could argue are the same.**_

 _ **But anyway! The next chapter will deal with the aftermath of the tournament and our favorite young alien's introduction to the Red-Ribbon Army! Now I've got at least two things about the next arc that I want to do which will change the overall history of the series; one is kinda minor in my opinion and it involves Lapis and Lazuli while the second is something that'll be huge but better explain something very crucial later on in the story. So I hope you all enjoy them.**_

 _ **Anyway, I know I didn't go into super detail about Goku's training, but there wasn't much I could think of to mention and I wasn't sure it was exceedingly necessary since we all know just how hard he trained in the original series. And for anyone who asks about how Goku managed to beat Roshi? The answer will come with help from the next arc, when I start to play a bit more into Saiyan genetics and their superb battle-built bodies.**_

 _ **Umm, Lazuli's interaction with Goku may seem a bit like he's being rude but I'm trying to paint it to show how little Goku knows about talking and dealing with others while also pointing out a sense of...ignorance I suppose, or maybe just blind hope with the girl who turns into Android 18 in the original series.**_

 _ **Other than that, please let me know what you thought about this chapter and feel free to leave reviews that let me know what I could touch up on or do better with. I'd really enjoy the feedback, since this is one of my favorite stories to post for, and I just wanna make it better.**_


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